the ramblings of miss aimymichelle

2012-01-26T17:28:00.000-08:00

Experience a closer relationship with your Savior in the pages of Mornings with Jesus 2012. Each page of this all-new devotional begins with a Scripture quote, followed by an uplifting devotion that demonstrates how Jesus’ life and teachings apply today. With humor, humility and grace, the seven writers share insights and reflections that you can relate to. You’ll also find “faith steps” that you can practice throughout your day, to help you carry the words of Jesus with you and make them real in your life.

When you read Jesus’ words and think about His lessons and miracles, you’ll feel your relationship to your Savior grown richer and deeper. You’ll find more strength, courage, joy and peace to meet the challenges of each day.

litfuse tour
Mornings with Jesus 2012 is out now. its a devotional that has been written by quite a few authors they are Judy Baer, Gwen Ford Faulkenberry, Tricia Goyer, Sharon Hinck, Keri Wyatt Kent, Erin Keeley Marshall and Camy Tang. some of those authors write amazing novels, the others i have never read or heard of.

regardless this is a great devotional to go through, it is specific for 2012 as it is a leap year. and its very well thought out and great. i love the cherry blossoms on the cover. sometimes its hard to review a devotional cause you can't just read it straight through. but it would definitely be a good one to add to your collection. they did provide me a giveaway copy but because i do not have funds for shipping i will donate mine to the library so it can bless someone there too!

thanks to litfuse and guideposts for the review copy. it is out now if you'd like to buy it go here!

2012-01-09T11:56:00.001-08:00

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

You never know when I might play a wild card on you!

Today's Wild Card author is:

Denise Hunter

and the book:

The Accidental Bride

Thomas Nelson (January 3, 2012)

***Special thanks to
Audra Jennings – The B&B Media Group – for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Denise lives in Indiana with her husband Kevin and their three sons. In 1996, Denise began her first book, a Christian romance novel, writing while her children napped. Two years later it was published, and she's been writing ever since. Her books often contain a strong romantic element, and her husband Kevin says he provides all her romantic material, but Denise insists a good imagination helps too!

Visit the author's website.

SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Shay Brandenberger has built her entire life on the shifting sands of what others think. Constantly seeking the approval of others, she has struggled through a rocky childhood, a failed marriage and single parenthood. Now it looks like she’s losing the ranch that has been in her family for three generations, a surefire way to mark her as a failure in the eyes of the community. When Travis McCoy, the high school sweetheart who very publicly broke her heart fifteen years before, returns to Moose Creek, she is less than pleased. Not only does his re-appearance dredge up a deluge of painful memories, it also reminds everyone in town that it was he who left her, not the other way around. To make matters worse, Shay and Travis are unwittingly paired to play bride and groom in the annual Founder’s Day wedding re-enactment where, much to her chagrin, she discovers he still has the power to take her breath away.

Product Details:

List Price: $15.99

Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (January 3, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1595548025
ISBN-13: 978-1595548023

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

The bell above the diner’s door jingled
and—despite her most valiant effort—Shay Brandenberger’s eyes darted toward the
entry. An unfamiliar couple entered—tourists. She could tell by their khaki
Eddie Bauer vests and spanking-new hiking boots. Look out, Yellowstone.

When her heart rate returned to normal,
she checked her watch and took a sip of coffee. Five minutes till she met Miss
Lucy at the Doll House, forty till she met John Oakley at the bank. What if he
said no? What would they do then?

“Mom . . . Earth to Mom . . .” Olivia
waved her hand too close to Shay’s face, her brown eyes widening.

“Sorry, hon.” The one bright moment of
her Saturday was breakfast with her daughter, and she couldn’t enjoy it for the
dread. “What were you saying?”

Olivia set her fork on her
pancake-sticky plate and heaved a sigh worthy of her twelve-year-old self.
“Never mind.” She bounced across the vinyl bench, her thick brown ponytail
swinging. “I’m going to meet Maddy.”

“Right back here at noon,” Shay called,
but Olivia was out the door with the flick of her hand.

The diner buzzed with idle chatter.
Silverware clattered and scraped, and the savory smell of bacon and fried eggs
unsettled her stomach. She took a sip of the strong brew from the fat rim of
her mug.

The bell jingled again. I will not look. I will
not look. I will not—

The server appeared at her booth, a new
girl, and gathered Olivia’s dishes. “On the house today.”

Shay set down her mug, bristling. “Why?”

The woman shrugged. “Boss’s orders,” she
said, then made off with the dirty dishes.

From the rectangular kitchen window,
Mabel Franklin gave Shay a pointed look.

So Shay had helped the couple with their
foal the week before. It was the neighborly thing to do.

Fine. She gave a reluctant smile and a
wave. She pulled her wallet from her purse, counted out the tip, and dragged
herself from the booth, remembering her daughter’s bouncy exit. Lately her
thirty-two years pressed down on her body like a two-ton boulder.

She opened the diner’s door and peeked
both ways before exiting the Tin Roof and turning toward the Doll House. She
was only checking sidewalk traffic, not hiding. Nope, she wasn’t hiding from
anyone. The boardwalks were busy on Saturdays. That was why she hadn’t come to
town for two weeks. Why their pantry was emptier than a water trough at high
noon.

She hurried three shops down and slipped
into the cool, welcoming air of Miss Lucy’s shop.

“ ’Morning, Miss Lucy.”

“ ’Morning, dear.” The elderly woman, in
the middle of helping a customer, called over her rounded shoulder, “It’s in
the back.” Miss Lucy’s brown eyes were big as buckeyes behind her thick
glasses, and her white curls glowed under the spotlights.

“Okeydoke.” Shay forced her feet toward
the storeroom.

A musty smell assaulted her as she
entered the back room and flipped on the overhead fluorescents. She scanned the
boxes of doll parts and skeins of yarn until she found what she was looking
for. She approached the box, lifted the lid, and parted the tissue.

The wedding gown had been carefully
folded and tucked away. Shay ran her fingers over the delicate lace and pearls.
Must’ve been crisp white in its day, but time had cast a long shadow over it.
Time had a way of doing that.

Her fingers lingered on the thin fabric.
She remembered another time, another dress. A simple white one that hung on her
young shoulders, just skimmed the cement of the courthouse steps. The ache that
squeezed her heart had faded with time, but it was there all the same. Would it
ever go away?

Shaking her head, Shay turned back to
the task at hand. The gown seemed too pretty, too fragile to disturb.

Oh well. She’d promised.

She pulled it out and draped it over the
box, then shimmied from her jeans. When she was down to the bare necessities,
she stepped carefully into the gown. She eased it over her narrow hips and slid
her arms into the long sleeves. The neckline was modest, the gathered skirt
fuller than anything she ever wore. Here in the air-conditioning it was fine,
but she would swelter next Saturday.

Leaving the button-up back gaping, she
hitched the skirt to the top of her cowboy boots and entered the store.

Miss Lucy was ushering the customer out
the door. When she turned, she stopped, her old-lady shoes squeaking on the
linoleum. “Land sakes.”

Shay took two steps forward and dropped
the skirt. It fell to the floor with a whoosh.

“Fits like a glove,” Miss Lucy said.
“And with some low heels it’ll be the perfect length.”

Shay didn’t even own heels. “My boots’ll
have to do. Button the back?”

Miss Lucy waddled forward, turned Shay
toward a small wall mirror flecked with time, and began working the tiny pearl
buttons.

Shay’s breath caught at her image. She
forced its release, then frowned. Wedding gowns were bad luck. She’d sworn
she’d never wear another. If someone had told her yesterday she’d be wearing
this thing today, she’d have said they were one straw short of a bale.

Miss Lucy moved up to the buttons
between her shoulders, and Shay lifted her hair. The dress did fit, clinging to
her torso like it was made for her, wouldn’t you know. Even the color
complemented her olive skin.

Still, there was that whole bad luck
thing.

And what would everyone think of Shay
Brandenberger wearing this valuable piece of Moose Creek heritage? A white
wedding gown, no less. If she didn’t have the approval of her closest friends
and neighbors, what did she have? Not much, to her thinking.

She wanted to cut and run. Wanted to
shimmy right out of the dress, tuck it into that box in the storeroom, slip
back into her Levi’s and plaid button-up, and go back to her ranch where she
could hole up for the next six months.

She checked the time and wished Miss
Lucy had nimbler fingers. Of all days to do this, a Saturday, when everyone
with two legs was in town. And she still had that infernal meeting with John
Oakley.

Please, God, I can’t lose our home . . .

“I’m obliged to you, dear. I completely
forgot Jessie was going out of town.”

“No problem.”

“Baloney. You’d rather be knee-deep in
cow dung.” The woman’s marionette lines at the sides of her mouth deepened.

“It’s one hour of my life.” A pittance,
after all Miss Lucy had done for her.

Miss Lucy finished buttoning, and Shay
dropped her hair and smoothed the delicate lace at the cuffs.

“Well, bless you for being willing. God
is smiling down on you today for your kindness.”

Shay doubted God really cared one way or
another. It was her neighbors she worried about.

“Beautiful, just beautiful. You’ll be
the talk of the town on Founders Day.”

“No doubt.” Everyone in Moose Creek
would be thinking about the last time she’d worn a wedding gown. And the time
before that.

Especially the time before that.

Third time’s a charm, Shay thought, the corner of her lip
turning up.

“Stop fretting,” Miss Lucy said,
squeezing her shoulders. “You look quite fetching, like the gown was made for
you. I won’t have to make a single alteration. Why, it fits you better than it
ever did Jessie—don’t you tell her I said so.”

Shay tilted her head. Maybe Miss Lucy
was right. The dress did make the most of her figure. And she had as much right
to wear it as anyone. Maybe more—she was born and raised here, after all. It
was just a silly old reenactment anyway. No one cared who the bride and groom
were.

The bell jingled as the door opened
behind her. She glanced in the mirror, over her shoulder, where a hulking
silhouette filled the shop’s doorway. There was something familiar in the set
of the man’s broad shoulders, in the slow way he reached up and removed his
hat.

The sight of him constricted her rib
cage, squeezed the air from her lungs as if she were wearing a corset. But she
wasn’t wearing a corset. She was wearing a wedding gown. Just as she had been
the last time she’d set eyes on Travis McCoy.

The Little Drummer Boy Review!

2011-12-23T10:48:00.001-08:00

The Little Drummer Boy is the newest VeggieTales DVD installment. VeggieTales always puts out the funnest and most amazing Christmas DVDs. Of course, VeggieTales episodes are fun and amazing in general. But they just keep getting better and better each DVD they put out.

The theme song is always a favorite of mine and has been since I first watched VeggieTales. I was pretty disappointed, though, that in some of the recent DVDs they don't play the whole theme song. But many shows have done that and it's a little thing in comparison to all the awesome things that the shows are full of.

The Little Drummer Boy stars Junior Asparagus, who I really love by the way. He has always been one of my favorite characters. He's just too cute for words. Most if not all people know about the little drummer boy. It's just such a classic song, so putting it to video is pretty amazing. One of my favorite parts of this DVD is how in the story portion they have two French peas named “May” and “Wee” - that was so clever to me. Another great part is the animals in the story - sheep, donkey and camel – that ended up doing a little dance in the movie which was so cute to me.

Now Junior is really getting into drumming, so when Pa Grape tells him a Christmas story, he picks the perfectly fitting story of Aaron as a drummer. It's such a great way to show kids the story of baby Jesus. It's not totally all about the Christmas story, but it shows a different perspective of someone who didn't know anything about Jesus being born and suddenly coming across him from somewhere else. It's a great story for sure.

The silly song portion of the movie was fun to watch for sure. I knew about the 8 Polish Foods of Christmas song before. Seeing that come to video was super amusing.

They also have a CD titled “O Holy Night” which is pretty much a soundtrack for the movie. It has some great Christmas songs. I love the version of “The Little Drummer Boy” by BeBe & CeCe Winans especially. It sounds great. It also has several of the songs from the DVD on it. They make a great addition to my Christmas playlist.

Thank you to Big Idea for providing me a copy of the DVD and CD for review!

the winner is..

2011-12-15T11:22:00.001-08:00

mommy2one126 ! please check your email and reply asap!

A giveaway!!!

2011-11-28T17:57:00.000-08:00

hello all!

i am hosting a giveaway for this:

With the vibrant illustrations and engaging text in this Bible storybook, you can enjoy sharing the best-loved stories of the Bible with the children in your life and encourage a life-long love for the Word of God. My Favorite Bible is a book of exciting Bible stories and activity pages that guide children through the foundational truths of Scripture.

Each story is fully illustrated and includes a simple narrative full of things kids love: repetition, rhythm, and energy, along with a key biblical theme, a key Bible verse, and discussion questions to help adults introduce children to the Bible.

The colorful illustrations will capture the imaginations of children ages 4–8, and the stories will help adults to pass along the most important truth in life—the Gospel. Families will cherish this time as they read, listen, learn, and love, growing closer to one another even as they grow closer to God.

to enter just leave a comment below with your email address! the giveaway will end on December 15th! good luck to everyone!

2011-11-18T18:50:00.000-08:00

Television producer Ava Ellington cannot refuse her grandfather's last wish--that she accompany him to Europe on a tour of World War II battle sites. Ava has little interest in historical battles, but this may be her last chance to break down the barriers that have grown up between them, and she sets off, camera in hand, ready to record and report on their journey. She and Grandpa Jack are greeted in Paris by Paul, her grandpa's best friend, and his grandson Dennis. The Dennis who just happens to be Ava's first love. History comes alive as the group travels across Europe--from the romantic sights of Paris to the bleak battlefields of Belgium to the Austrian labor camp these men liberated so many years before--and Ava sees a side of her grandfather she's never known before. As he shares his memories of those bitter days on the battlefield, she begins to understand how his experiences in the war made him the man he is today. Throughout the journey, Ava and Dennis are drawn together in ways neither of them expected. Can their memories of the past lead to a bright new future?

My thoughts on “remembering you” by Tricia Goyer are, it was really amazing honestly. Most times you read things about the war and its just really boring to be perfectly honest. And I had very little hope that I would finish the book. I went in thinking I’d only read a few chapters and that would be it. And that is not how it went at all. I got sucked into the story and suddenly some war stories weren't boring at all. And neither was this book. Its so packed and has some shocking moments in it. It was a really great read.

Tricia Goyer is celebrating the release of her novel, Remembering You, with a KINDLE Touch Giveaway for you ... and for the friend of your choice. Then on 11/29 she'll be wrapping up the release of Remembering You with a Book Chat Party!

During the first half of the party Tricia will be chatting, sharing a sneak peek of her next book, and giving away a ton of great stuff. Then she'll head over to her website for a Live Chat! Readers will be able to chat with Tricia via video or text.

Don't miss your chance to win a Kindle Touch for yourself ... and to "remember" a friend this holiday with a Kindle Touch for them!

Read what the reviewers are saying here.

One grand prize winner will receive:

A Brand New Kindle Touch and a Kindle Touch for a Friend (winner's choice!)

A copy of Remembering You by Tricia Goyer for each

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends at noon on November 29th. Winner will be announced at Remembering You Facebook Party on 11/29. Tricia will be hosting an author chat (on Facebook and Live from her website) and giving away copies of her other WWII books and gift certificates to Starbucks and Amazon.com. So grab your copy of Remembering You and join Tricia on the evening of the 29th for an author chat, a trivia contest (How much do you know about WWII?) and lots of giveaways.

Don't miss a moment of the fun. RSVP today and tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 15th!

2011-11-08T15:59:00.001-08:00

Today's Wild Card author is:

Carlos Parra Diaz

and the book:

Hope Underground

Africa Publishing Company (September 28, 2011)

***Special thanks to Audra Jennings, Senior Media Specialist, The B&B Media Group for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

After serving as chaplain at Camp Hope during the 2010 mine collapse that trapped 33 miners a half-mile underground for 69 days, minister Carlos Parra Diaz believes he is now living the answer to a prayer. Today he finds himself exactly where he asked to be placed several months before the collapse when he climbed atop a hill near his home and prayed God would use him to bring awareness of Jesus to all nations.

Believing it was God’s hand that placed him in Camp Hope and gratified to be given the privilege of participating, Parra admits his life will never be the same because of the experience. He further acknowledges that what happened at the San José Mine “offers unequivocal testimony that, in this 21st century, faith still does move mountains.”

Today, Pastor Parra, his wife Gloria and their two children live in Asunción, Paraguay, where he serves as regional pastor and missionary. In addition, he continues to share his experience with others throughout the world, diligently seeking every opportunity to spread the message of the San José Mine: that our God is a God of Love.

Visit the author's website.

SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:

For several suspenseful hours on October 13, 2010, the attention of the entire world lay centered on a solitary spot in the Chilean desert. It was there that 33 trapped miners emerged to fresh air and freedom and the eager embrace of jubilant family and friends, after having spent ten weeks entombed one-half mile underground. Their emergence brought an end to the greatest mine rescue of all time.

As told to writers Mario Veloso and Jeanette Windle, Hope Underground: The 34 Chilean Miners—A Story of Faith and Miracles (Imago Dei Books) records the personal journey and spiritual involvement of a local, unassuming minister with the miners and their families. In a series of circumstances that would change his life forever, Pastor Carlos Parra Diaz rose to prominence as he became the influential chaplain of Camp Hope—a makeshift tent community established not far from the site of the mine collapse.

Yet Hope Underground is clearly more than just Pastor Parra’s story. Rather, it is the story of all who came together at Camp Hope focused on asking God to do a mighty work on behalf of the miners and the overwhelming evidence of His response that followed. Told simply and from the heart, Pastor Parra describes not only his own involvement with the families at Camp Hope but also introduces the reader to those miners, family members and officials who extracted nuggets of hope from the situation and then used them to instill faith in others.

For most people, this spectacular rescue is already yesterday’s news. However, for the millions who prayed for a miracle, this event has become a spiritual heritage for the whole world, a stirring reminder that God listens to the pleas of His children.
Readers are introduced to women like Maria Segovia, the “mayor” of Camp Hope, whose quiet strength and steadfast faith daily encouraged others. We meet the miner whose wife gave birth to their first child during the ten-week ordeal—a daughter they named Esperanza (which means Hope). And no reader will soon forget the youngest miner who boldly insisted there were 34 in the mine instead of 33 because, as he explained, “God never abandoned us.”

Though on its own, the story of his involvement would provide fascinating reading, what Pastor Parra gives us in Hope Underground is so much more. With humility and reverence, he leads us through the story of Camp Hope to a new realization that God remains a never failing presence to everyone willing to call upon His name.

Product Details:

List Price: $14.99
Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: Africa Publishing Company (September 28, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0986979953
ISBN-13: 978-0986979958

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

The Journey Begins

My own journey of faith did not begin August 5, 2010, on the dusty slopes of San José Mine, but almost forty-three years earlier and far to the south. I was born Carlos Roberto Parra Díaz on September 15, 1967, in the small, rural community of Coelemu, located 500 kilometers south of Chile’s capital city, Santiago. In complete contrast to the Atacama Desert where I would one day find myself, Coelemu is a richly fertile region of rolling hills, eucalyptus forests, green pastures and cultivated fields, fruit orchards, and grape vineyards. Nearby winds the placid waterway of the Itata River.
The family into which I was born was of modest means. My father, Luis Parra, worked at many types of manual labor within the lumber industry, the region’s primary export. My mother, Ester, stayed busy running our household and rearing nine children, of whom I was one of the youngest. We lived in a small house built of wood that faced onto an unpaved dirt lane. If cramped for such a large family, we could always retreat outside to a sizable patio filled with fruit trees and a grape arbor. There my siblings and I played, climbing trees, running among the grapevines, driving tiny model cars in the dirt.

My parents were devout Christians, and from my earliest childhood I attended a local evangelical church where I grew up hearing Bible stories and singing hymns and choruses. Our small town was privileged to have both a primary and a secondary school, where my siblings and I attended. The flow of life in Coelemu was unhurried and serene.

Yet I was not always happy. As one of the youngest in a large family, I constantly battled low self-esteem. I had been taught the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ. I believed in the existence and power of a Creator God. But I had never placed my own faith in Jesus Christ or made any personal commitment to follow my Creator.

When I graduated from secondary school at age seventeen, there were no funds available for further education. In fact, no one in my family had ever gone on to university. I had done well in school and dreamed of a higher education. But without the necessary funds, I headed instead to the nearest city to look for work.

Seventy kilometers south of Coelemu, Concepción is Chile’s second largest metropolitan center with a population of almost a million people. One of my older brothers, Claudio, had already moved there. Boarding in his home, I quickly found a job. I worked hard, sending part of my earnings home to help my parents, saving what I could in hopes I might be able to study again someday. I made friends.

But I soon also turned my back on the Christian upbringing my parents had provided for me. The big city was filled with temptations for a young man out on his own for the first time. When I was not working, my days soon became a round of parties, dances, and other entertainments of which my parents would certainly not have approved. Church attendance was something of the past.

Once a month or so, I would travel home. My parents had no idea how my life had changed. They were simply happy their son had found work and was building a future for himself. In contrast, despite all the excitement of city life, I was not happy at all. By age nineteen, I had fallen into a deep depression. While I could point to nothing specifically wrong, my life seemed to be spiraling out of my control. I began to question whether God even existed. My self-esteem had hit rock bottom. I had a job, friends, and all my needs supplied. But there seemed no purpose to my existence, no reason to keep living.

By a certain evening when I was nineteen years old, I had come to a drastic decision: I would take my own life. I’d gone out that evening to party with one of my friends. But I could not make myself enjoy the festivities. Offering an excuse to leave my friend, I headed toward the railroad tracks cutting through that part of the city, thinking to throw myself in front of a passing train.

That particular night was clear of clouds, the stars bright against a black sky. It had been a long time since I’d thought of the God in whom my parents had raised me to believe, the Almighty Creator of the Universe. But as I lifted my eyes to that star-strewn sky, it was as though I glimpsed in the soft glitter of the constellations far above me a peace that I had not been able to find anywhere below on earth—a peace so vast and breathtaking, it brought sharply to my mind the presence of the God I’d learned of as a child, His pardon, His peace.

In desperation, I cried out in the direction of those stars, “God, if you are really there, please forgive my sins, and give me another chance to live.”
The answer that came was not thunder from heaven, but I heard its words as audibly as though spoken aloud. “Carlos, I will give you another opportunity to live. But you must live that life for me.”

I dropped my gaze from the glittering expanse of the night sky. But the moment I started looking at the darkness all around, despair once again overwhelmed me. I now know that this was a direct attack from Satan. You are worthless, he was murmuring in my mind. You would be better off taking your own life.
But the God who had created those constellations and spoken to me from heaven did not abandon me now. Before I could make any rash move, the friend I’d walked out on came rushing up. Somehow he’d sensed my earlier desperation. Worried, he’d been looking for me in all the places we usually hung out. He insisted on escorting me home to my brother’s house.
By now it was late at night. My brother Claudio let me in and told me to go to bed. We’d talk in the morning. Still battling despair, I went to my room. There I spotted a New Testament lying on a shelf. I couldn’t sleep, so I picked up the New Testament and began leafing through its pages. I don’t even remember what passages I read. But in those pages, I caught a glimpse of the same supernatural peace that I’d sensed in the stars. It was as though God was speaking to me again, giving me a direct confirmation that the earlier conversation we’d had was real and that He had forgiven all the wrong things I’d done over those last two years.
Going to bed at last, I slept like a small child, without stirring. When I awoke the next morning, I knew I was a new person, born again. From that day, I committed myself to follow God with all my heart.

“Almighty God, as I asked, You have given me a new chance to live,” I prayed. “Now I surrender my life to do Your will. Guide me wherever it is that You want me to serve. Let me live to exalt Your name among all nations.”
My next step was to find a local church where I could once again hear and study God’s Word. Locating one some distance away within the city of Concepción, I attended there for the next year or so. Then new neighbors moved next door to my brother Claudio’s house where I was still living. They were Seventh-day Adventist missionaries, a denomination I had never heard of at that time. They were friendly and kind. Within a short time, they’d volunteered to teach a Bible study in our neighborhood, which I began attending with my sister-in-law, Claudio’s wife. After three months of intensive Bible study, both of us made the decision to be baptized as a witness of our faith. On June 24, 1989, I surrendered my life in baptism. I was twenty-one years old.

From the moment I’d placed my faith in God, I’d committed my life to serve God. But I had no thoughts at that time of ever becoming a pastor or missionary. By then I’d found a good job as an administrative aide in a bank. But I still dreamed of one day getting a higher education. Then our neighbors told me about the Adventist University in nearby Chillán, a city about a hundred kilometers east of Coelemu.
“But I have no funds for university study,” I immediately responded.
That didn’t matter, the missionaries informed me. Then they explained to me the Adventist University’s unique system of self financing. Students could work one year for the university and then attend free the next year, alternating work and study years until they’d achieved their chosen degree. With great excitement, I enrolled, planning to study accounting, a career that would allow me not only to provide for myself, but to help my family. But by the end of my first year working for the university, God had made it clear that He was calling me into full-time ministry. When I finally started my university studies in 1991, it was in the field of theology rather than accounting.

For the next seven years, I alternated between working and studying. My employment for the university was as a colporteur, distributing and selling Christian literature door to door all over the city as well as in surrounding towns and villages. God had now made clear His calling on my life. But I did not want to follow that calling alone. I began to pray that God would bring into my life the marriage partner He had for me. For five years I prayed, not only that God would prepare the right wife for me, but that He would prepare me as a godly husband for that wife.

Then in my third year of studies, I found myself in Santiago, the capital city of Chile. Part of the course requirements for third year theology students was to conduct an evangelistic campaign. Among the volunteers helping at the church where I’d been assigned to preach was an attractive young woman named Gloria Angélica Montoya. From a third-generation Christian home, Gloria was a committed Christian herself, deeply involved in children’s and youth ministry within her church. She also worked full-time as a nursing assistant at a local psychiatric clinic.

The following year was one of those in which I was not studying. I stayed on in Santiago, working in the literature ministry and also getting to know Gloria better. It was not long before we both recognized how much we’d come to love each other. Both of us had complete peace that God was calling us together as life partners.

Gloria and I were married in the summer of 1996. We returned from Santiago to Chillán for my last year of theological studies. I graduated in 1998 and spent the next year doing a ministry apprenticeship in Concepción. Then Gloria and I returned to Santiago, where for the next five years I served as pastor and missionary overseeing a group of churches in the Santiago metropolitan area. By this time God had given Gloria and me two beautiful children: my son Carlos Malaquías (Malachi), who at the time of this book’s writing is thirteen years old, and my daughter Belén, who is now ten.

In 2003, we moved again as a family to Chile’s beautiful Viña del Mar region, famous for its vineyards and beaches. Once again, I served as pastor and missionary to a group of churches scattered around the area. Traveling from one to another, I would preach God’s Word, teach and counsel church members, and spearhead evangelistic outreach into each community.
It was 2009 when I was asked if I would move from the Viña del Mar region to serve as an area coordinator in the northern city of Copiapó. Moving from the lush vegetation that I’d known all my life in southern Chile to the barren wastelands of the Atacama Desert would be a shock, I knew. But I also knew God was calling me to accept this new ministry challenge. In Copiapó I would have under my supervision nine churches, including a Gypsy kangiri, as this Romany people group called their church assemblies, in the small community of Paipote eight kilometers from Copiapó.
The regional capital of Copiapó is a community of about 130,000 inhabitants just beyond where Chile’s southern “green zone” gives way to the Atacama Desert. Its main industrial base is the copper, silver, and gold ore dug out of numerous mines in the surrounding area. A large copper smelter in nearby Paipote employs many local residents. Unexpectedly in such an arid zone, the second main source of employment is agricultural production. From my first visit to Copiapó, I was pleasantly surprised to find the town a green oasis, with irrigation for citrus and olive trees, vineyards, and vegetable crops coming from subterranean water sources deep beneath the thirsty surface.

Beyond the irrigated zones, the barrenness of a region that does not receive a single drop of rain is immediately evident. Since my childhood in Coelemu, surrounded by forest-cloaked hills, climbing has been one of my favorite pastimes. Once I’d begun my ministry, I’d made a practice in each new place to which God moved us of finding a nearby hill to climb where I be alone with God and pray. I was encouraged in doing so by the recognition that I was following Jesus’s own example of retreating in solitude to the mountains to spend time with His heavenly Father.
Shortly after arriving in Copiapó, I climbed to the top of a high hill overlooking the city, a peak dubbed by local residents Cerro de la Cruz, or Mountaintop of the Cross. The reason for its name was clear as I climbed. At the very summit of the hill, a large white cross rose against the cloudless blue backdrop of the sky.

As I reached the foot of the cross, a Bible verse rose to my thoughts that God had placed in my heart and mind since the very beginning of my ministry. The words were Jesus’s own as He foretold how He would soon die upon a cross: “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 12:32).

Ever since God had called me to serve Him in full-time ministry, my greatest desire had been to see the eyes of everyone drawn to Jesus Christ, to see my Savior exalted among all nations. As I stood there praying over the city of Copiapó and the new ministry to which God had called me, I added a very specific and bold prayer request. I prayed that God would open the door for me to preach His good news of redemption through Jesus Christ, not just in the city of Copiapó, but across the entire region of Atacama, throughout all Chile, and—if in God’s sovereign will I was given opportunity—one day even to the rest of the world beyond Chile’s borders.
Over the next months I was very busy in my new ministry responsibilities, visiting each of the nine churches assigned to my administration, working and praying with both adults and youth for revival in the church. Together as a united body of believers, we prayed that God would show us how we could make a difference in this city and region for Christ.
Meanwhile, my family had settled in well, my children quickly making new friends at a local Adventist school they attended. When we had free time, we enjoyed hiking the hills around Copiapó as a family. But whenever I could find time, I would climb alone to the white cross on the top of Cerro de la Cruz. Each time I would pray again the prayer I’d offered up on that first day.
Never did I dream that within eighteen months of the first time I climbed that hillside, God would provide a wonderful answer to that bold prayer I’d made, opening the doors for me to speak His gospel, not just throughout the Atacama region and all of Chile, but across the entire world.

kids are hilarious

2011-10-27T15:33:00.000-07:00

i was thinking today about sunday at church. sometimes they just say the funniest things. i don't have much else to say but i leave you with this gem. out of no where one of the girls was talking to another one of the volunteers and she pops up with this

"my mom passed gas in the car"

there are no words....

2011-10-15T09:27:00.000-07:00

Today's Wild Card author is:

Beth Webb Hart

and the book:

Sunrise on the Battery

Thomas Nelson (October 11, 2011)

***Special thanks to Audra Jennings, Senior Media Specialist, The B&B Media Group for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

With a B.A. in English Literature from Hollins University and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Sarah Lawrence College, Hart serves as an inspirational speaker and creative writing instructor at conferences, retreats, schools, libraries and churches across the country, and she is the recipient of two national teaching
awards from Scholastic, Inc. and the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers. She lives with her husband, composer Edward Hart, and their family in Charleston.

Visit the author's website.

SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:

She wanted her husband to attend the town’s society-driven church.

God answered her prayer in a radical way.

An emptiness dogs Mary Lynn Scoville. But it shouldn’t. After all, she’s achieved what few believed possible. Born in the rural south, she has reached the pinnacle of worldly success in Charleston, South Carolina. Married to a handsome real estate developer and mother to three accomplished daughters, Mary Lynn is one Debutante Society invitation away from truly having it all. And yet, it remains—an emptiness that no shopping trip, European vacation, or social calendar can fill.

When a surprise encounter leads her to newfound faith, Mary Lynn longs to share it with her husband. But Jackson wrote God off long ago. Mary Lynn prays for him on Christmas Eve...and her husband undergoes a life-altering, Damascus Road experience. As Jackson begins to take the implications of the Gospel literally, Mary Lynn feels increasingly isolated from her husband...and betrayed by God. She only wanted Jackson beside her at church on Sunday mornings, not some Jesus freak who evangelizes prostitutes and invites the homeless to tea.

While her husband commits social suicide and the life they worked so hard for crumbles around them, Mary Lynn wonders if their marriage can survive. Or if perhaps there really is a more abundant life that Jackson has discovered, richer than any she’s ever dreamed of.

Product Details:

List Price: $15.99
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (October 11, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1595542000
ISBN-13: 978-1595542007

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

Mary Lynn Scoville

December 24, 2009

It was the morning before Christmas, and Mary Lynn was preparing for her sunrise jog around the tip of the Charleston Peninsula. She stretched her thighs and calves in the gray light of her piazza, then bounded out of her South Battery home, traveling west toward the coast guard station like she did every morning as part of her effort to “finally get back in shape” since her fortieth birthday, six short months ago.

   By the time she reached Tradd Street, the gray had turned to a soft, creamy light, and she hung a left and rounded the corner onto Murray Boulevard where she traced the west tip of the peninsula as buoys bobbed in the churning water of the harbor and pelicans—beak first, wings pulled tight against their large prehistoric bodies—dove for breakfast in a thrilling kind of free fall.

   At her husband Jackson’s strong suggestion, she stayed clear of the darkened cars parked along the edge of the waterway leading up to White Point Gardens. Unseemly characters gathered along the water’s edge at night and often fell asleep there, not to mention the handful of homeless folks who made their berths on park benches. There had been a murder in one of the cars last year as well as a rape, but the light was too high in the sky for any of that now. As her friend from her bluegrass days, Scottie Truluck, boldly proclaimed the day after someone broke into her house and took off with her laptop and her sterling silver tea set, you couldn’t let fear get in the way of your city life.

   Mary Lynn hit her stride, as usual, at the High Battery as a lone sailboat with little blinking white Christmas lights encircling its mast pushed through the choppy water. She felt her heart rate rising and she became conscious of her breathing, so she attempted to take her mind off of her workout and the pounding of the pavement on her knees by going through her to-do list for the day as she passed the Carolina Yacht Club where Jackson had been offered a membership after his second time through the application process. Hot dog! An invitation to join this exclusive, tight-knit club was a kind of proof that they had been officially accepted by Charleston society. Not an easy feat in this historic southern city that, after two brutal wars and a depression that stretched on for half a century, had good reason to be wary of outsiders. Of course, they both knew they had Mark Waters—an older friend with hometown ties—to thank for this and many of the doors that had been opened to them.

   Still, Mark didn’t run the entire city (especially not the old-Charleston set) no matter how deep his pockets, and the yacht club membership meant that they had finally passed some sort of insider’s test after their move to the city ten years ago. And that, along with the invitation Mary Lynn received last year to join the Charlestowne Garden Club and another to serve as chairman of the board of the old and prestigious Peninsula Day School, made her feel like this truly was their home. Their real home. She smiled even as she panted. She and Jackson, two country bumpkins from Meggett, South Carolina, were somehow making their way into Charleston society. Who’d have ever thunk it?

   But that wasn’t even the primary goal for Jackson, who was the sharpest, most focused man Mary Lynn had ever known. The real goal for him (and he had written it down and asked her to put it in her jewelry box in an envelope marked “family mission statement”) was to give their three girls the life he and Mary Lynn never had. This meant a top-rate education, exposure and immersion in the fine arts, and frequent opportunities to see the big wide world beyond the Carolina lowcountry or the United States for that matter.

   “Not just education, baby—cultivation,” he would say as they lay side by side in their four-poster antique bed purchased on King Street for a pretty penny, Jackson resting some classic novel he should have read in high school on his chest. Then Mary Lynn would look up from the Post and Courier or Southern Living or lately, the little black leather Bible Scottie had given her after the birthday luncheon meltdown, and smile.

   Every time Mary Lynn and Jackson discussed their children, she had an image of her husband tilling the soil of their daughters’ minds and dropping down the little seeds like he did every spring growing up on his daddy’s farm. “Just like the tomaters, darlin’,” he’d say in his exaggerated country accent. “Only now it is little intellects that will one day be big as cantaloupes!”

   A pretty lofty mission. But a worthy one, Mary Lynn supposed. Though sometimes she grew nervous that he rode the girls too hard with their school work and over scheduled them with extracurricular activities—strings lessons, writing workshops, ballet, and foreign language. They sure didn’t have much time to lollygag or linger or strike out on an adventure as she had as a child roaming the corn fields on her uncle’s farm, climbing trees, building forts, or spending the night in a sleeping bag beneath a blanket of stars. Despite her mama’s missteps and mean old Mrs. Gustafson, who made sure the whole town knew every little detail about them, Mary Lynn had a sanctuary on her uncle’s farm. Much of her childhood she was ignorantly blissful of all the trouble and the gossip that surrounded her family as she played hide-and-seek in the corn husks with her mama, running fast through the papery leaves that gently slapped her face. Then crouching down as she heard the sweet voice of her only parent call, “Ready or not, here I come!”

   But Mary Lynn had to acknowledge the fruit of Jackson’s labors. Thanks to his staying after them, the girls were well on their way to mastering a stringed instrument and they could carry on a conversation (and for their oldest, read a novel) in French and Spanish. Imagine!

   Who would have guessed the upward turn their lives would take after Jackson’s daddy’s death revealed the little real estate gems up and down the South Carolina coast he had inherited from a great uncle? The timing was right and Jackson had been shrewd. He turned to Mark Waters, who showed him just how to go about it. This was in the early ’90s, well before the economic downturn, and Jackson sold each piece of property for five and even ten times what his great uncle had paid for it. Then he bought more land, bought several low-end housing projects Mark introduced him to, invested in some of Mark’s big commercial and condo development ventures, and did the same year-in and year-out for more than a decade as the market soared.

   “Boy, you picked wisely,” Mama had said the first time she came to visit them at their new home on South Battery. She narrowed her eyes and looked up at Mary Lynn. “’Course I thought Mark was going to gnash his teeth when he got a gander at the skinny farm boy you had fallen for.”

   “Mama, Mark was married by that point.”

   “Not that nuptials ever meant much to the Waters clan.” She winked, then shook her head. Mary Lynn guessed her mama was thinking of her own engagement to Mark’s father, who had proposed after she ran his office for years. They never did make it to the altar. “But you saw something in Jackson no one else took the time to see, smart girl.” Then she walked carefully over to the portrait of some eighteenth-century British gentleman that their decorator had insisted they purchase for the foyer, rubbed the corner of its gilded frame, and shook her head in disbelief before turning back. “You saw the man in the boy, didn’t you?”

   Mary Lynn had smiled. Then she walked over and kissed her mama’s made-up cheek. It felt cool like putty.

   “I was just lucky, Mama.” And that was the truth. Jackson was the only boy in town she ever dated, though Mark Waters had told her more than once he’d wait for her to grow up. Of course, she wasn’t surprised that he didn’t.

   Her mama had nodded her head as she walked into the foyer and rested her hand on the grand staircase’s large pineapple finial. Then she gazed up the three flights of intricately trimmed hardwood stairs, clucked her tongue, and said, “Everybody gets lucky sometimes, I reckon.”

Now if Jackson stuck with Mark and played it right, he might not have to work for the rest of his life, and he and Mary Lynn would leave a pretty penny to their girls someday. With financial security and intellects as big as cantaloupes, what more could their daughters need?

   But back to the to-do list. Mary Lynn still had a few presents to wrap, and she needed to polish the silver serving pieces for the “show and tell” tea party they had hosted every Christmas afternoon for the last eight years. Jackson, who had taken up the cello a few years ago, was trying to get their three daughters to perform a movement from a Haydn string quartet (Opus 20, no. 4 in D major, second movement to be exact), and he had played the slow and somber piece on the CD player so many times over the last month that Mary Lynn found that she was waking up from her sleep with the notes resounding in her head.

   She’d never really known of Haydn; she never knew a lick about classical music until they moved to Charleston and started going to the symphony and the Spoleto Festival events. Eventually they became supporters of the symphony and the College of Charleston’s music department, and now she found she could recognize a few pieces by ear, though in all honesty, she always daydreamed when she went to a concert. Sometimes it would be over, the audience would be standing for their ovation, and she’d be lost in thought about shelling butter beans on the back porch with Aunt Josey or sitting by Uncle Dale in the rocking chairs as he tuned his mandolin before they started in on “Man of Constant Sorrow” or “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” with him singing low and Mary Lynn singing the dissonant high lonesome sound while she twirled and twirled around. Uncle Dale said she had a voice that was pure sugar and more moves than a croker sack full of eels. And once when Mark Waters and his daddy, Cecil, were over, Cecil teared up over the singing and the twirling and then insisted on underwriting voice and guitar lessons from a famous country music writer who had settled in Charleston. Mary Lynn and her mother drove the fifty minutes into town for the next seven years until she graduated with two offers: one from her guitar instructor to join his newly formed bluegrass band as the lead singer, and an academic scholarship to USC-Beaufort. Since she was smart enough even then to know that an eighteen-year-old girl didn’t need to be traveling in a band, and since Jackson had proposed on bended knee, she did what felt right to her heart: she chose the scholarship and married her sweetheart.

   But on those mornings when she dropped the kids off at school and had to run a few errands, she turned back to the radio station she grew up listening to, an old blend of rock ‘n’ roll and country and bluegrass, and tapped along to Elvis Presley or Johnny Cash or the Stanley Brothers as she drove through the historic streets with her windows rolled up as if she were in her own secret time capsule, transporting herself back to when she was thirteen, dancing and twirling with her mama to “Return to Sender” on the screened porch as Aunt Josey and Uncle Dale clapped and laughed.

   Catherine and Lilla, Mary Lynn’s oldest girls, both played violin, and Casey, the baby by five years, played the viola. Their family quartet sounded all right, except for the cello, which made an occasional alley cat screech when Jackson came at it a little off angle. She imagined they’d be practicing all day to get it right for tomorrow’s performance.

   The sun was beginning to warm Mary Lynn’s back when she turned from East Bay Street onto Broad where she planned to sprint all-out to Meeting Street, then stop and walk briskly home the rest of the way, her hands raised and clasped behind her head, her heart pounding, then slowing moment by moment as the brisk air chilled her sweaty body to the bone. What a way to wake up! She loved it. And she had shed twelve of the fifteen pounds she had been trying to get rid of since her big birthday.

   But this morning, just after she bounded at full speed across Church Street and back onto the uneven sidewalk of Broad Street, the front tip of her left running shoe caught for a split second in a crooked old grate so that when she slammed her right foot down and lunged at a sharp angle to keep herself from somersaulting, she heard a tear just below the back of her knee and a pain blasted through her calf as though she had been shot at close range.

   “Agh!” she screamed, falling hard on her side and grasping the back of her right leg.

   She knew what had happened, and she wasn’t sure if it was her knowledge or the pain that was causing the intense wave of nausea. She spit and attempted to will her stomach to settle down as her aching muscle throbbed.

   The injury, she was sure, was tennis leg, a rupture of the calf muscle on the inside of the leg. She had suffered the same kind of tear in the same place two other times before. Once when Scottie had taken her to a Joni Mitchell concert in Atlanta and she had danced a little too hard to “California,” and just two years ago, when she was standing on the top of her living room sofa, hanging a new set of silk drapes hours before hosting a Parents Guild luncheon.

   Mary Lynn put her forehead on her knee and ground her teeth. The stones from the old sidewalk were cool beneath her legs, and a chill worked its way up her spine. At best, she would spend the next ten days on crutches icing down her leg every few hours. And then another six weeks in physical therapy. Or worse, she would have to undergo surgery—something Dr. Powell had warned her about after her last rupture. “Surgery means no bearing weight for four months,” he had said, looking over his tortoise shell bifocals at her. “So be cautious, Mary Lynn.”

   The street was quiet on this early Thursday morning. No one was around to gawk or help her up, and she started to weep—more from the frustration, from the time she would lose in the days and weeks to come, and from the stupid grate that no one in the city had bothered to right in maybe one hundred years than from the pain that seemed to compound itself with every new beat of her heart.

   She put her clammy palms on the sidewalk and rotated her body over to her left side toward the entry way of the Spencer Art Gallery, and then she slowly felt her way up the side of the stone building until she was upright. She would have to walk on her tippy toes until she flagged someone down or found an open store where she could use the phone to call Jackson.

   Mary Lynn swung her head back and forth in an effort to shake off the stars she was seeing. She walked a good block, carefully, on the balls of her feet to the corner of Meeting and Broad singing “Walk a Mile in My Shoes” by Elvis just to keep herself going. When she rounded the corner where St. Michael’s Episcopal Church stood, she spotted Roy Summerall, the rector, chatting animatedly to a familiar-looking man who leaned against a parked taxi cab, steam rising from his coffee mug.

   She recognized the man as soon as he glanced in her direction. It was Craig MacPherson, Alyssa’s father. (Alyssa was one of Catherine’s best friends.) He had lost his job as a real estate appraiser during the recent economic crisis, and he was forced to pull Alyssa out of the Peninsula Day School, the private school Mary Lynn’s daughters attended. Now she could see that the rumor she heard was true. He was driving a cab to make ends meet.

   Then just as she relaxed the balls of her feet after her favorite line in the chorus—“Yeah, before you abuse, criticize and accuse . . .”—in her relief over finding some folks she knew could help her, the pain shot through her leg, worse than before, and she leaned forward and vomited all over the base of the large white church column closest to Broad Street.

   The men must have heard her retching. By the time she looked back up again, wincing and straining to get upright and back on her tip toes, they were by her side, gently placing her arms around their shoulders.

   “You all right, Mary Lynn?” Reverend Summerall asked. She had been attending his church with Scottie every now and then, and she had met him once briefly at a Downtown Neighborhood Association gathering awhile back, but she was sort of surprised that he remembered her name.

   She pulled her arm back around, wiped her mouth with the back of her fleece jacket, then placed it on his shoulder again. “Tennis leg.” She shook her head in disbelief. “I tore a muscle in my calf. It’s happened to me before.”

   The men made a quick plan to carry her to the cab.

   “On three,” Craig MacPherson said, and after he called out the numbers, she felt them lift her up and carefully scurry her down the sidewalk before setting her gently in the backseat of Craig’s taxi.

   “Let’s get you home,” Craig said.

   “Wait.” Roy put his hand on her shoulder and uttered a quick prayer. She couldn’t make out the words, but that didn’t matter. She had no problem with prayers. In fact, she was starting to like them. She’d been going with Scottie to a women’s prayer group at the church every Wednesday afternoon for almost two years now, and she had become downright used to listening to folks pray out loud for one another’s needs, though she’d never had the nerve to join in.

   “Thank you.” She looked up and swiveled her head back and forth to meet both sets of sympathetic eyes. “I’ll be okay.” And then to Roy, “Sorry to leave a mess on your portico.”

   The priest smiled. “Don’t worry about that. Just take care of yourself. I’ll check in on you later.”

   Mary Lynn nodded, and Craig gently closed the cab door and walked around to the driver’s side. She was surprised by how clean the car was. It smelled like soap and maybe gardenias? Some sort of flower, anyway. And when she looked up to see Craig’s picture and license displayed on the visor, she noticed a drawing that Alyssa must have made for him. It was of the steeple of St. Michael’s with the sun shining through the second tier balcony. The one with the handsome arches. Then she saw the girl’s name inscribed in the far right corner.

   Sitting down felt much better, and Mary Lynn was astonished by how much the pain receded when she took weight off of her leg. She needed to get ice on her calf as soon as she got home, and she would have to elevate her leg (up higher than her heart as she recalled) to stop the ache. That was how she would spend the whole afternoon—her leg in a pillow with a rope tied to the ceiling beam. That and calling all of the guests to cancel tomorrow’s tea.

   But she felt so much better at this moment. Whew. Sitting down in the back of the clean cab with the bright sunlight shooting through the windows, she felt relief. As if, for a moment anyway, it had never happened.

   As they turned off of Meeting Street onto South Battery, she could see her historic white clapboard home in the distance, particularly grand in its Christmas décor—fresh garland around the doorway and piazza rail, two magnolia-leaf wreaths with large gold bows on each piazza door, and even a little red berry wreath around the head of the statue in the center of the fountain in the side garden. That had been Casey’s idea, and it added a little whimsy to the decorations, Mary Lynn thought. To her it made the house wink to the passersby as if to say, There are children who live here! It’s not a just a photo from Architectural Digest. See? Every time Mary Lynn saw it, she grinned.

   As Craig went around to help her out of the car, she turned to face him and still did not feel the pain. He took out his cell phone. “Should I call Jackson to meet us down here?”

   “No,” she said. “He’s probably on his morning walk and I’m sure the girls are still asleep.” She reached out her hand. “If you help me out, I can make it in on the balls of my feet.”

   Like Mary Lynn, Jackson had a morning ritual—walking their black Labrador, Mac, up King Street to Caviar & Bananas, munching on a scone and an espresso, reading the New York Times, preparing for a meeting with Mark or mapping out the day, the week, or the month—depending on how exuberant he was—and walking briskly home. Sometimes she ran into him a block from their house on her way home from her morning run. He usually brought something back to her—a muffin or a strawberry dipped in chocolate, which she discreetly gave to Anarosa, the housekeeper, to take home to her little boys. And now that the girls were out of school for the holiday, he brought something for them as well. Casey always enjoyed her treat, but the older girls were watching their weight and they, too, gave their treat to Anarosa.

   When Craig leaned forward, she put her arm around his shoulder and let him hoist her up on her tippy toes. Then she took a step forward on the balls of her feet, still leaning on him, and she didn’t feel any pain. She took another step. Nothing. Her calf felt normal. She almost put her heels down, but she was afraid to.

   When a horn from a driver stuck behind the recycling truck blasted just yards ahead, she was so startled, she leaned back and was forced to put her heel on the sidewalk.

   The pain behind the back of her knee was not there.

   She looked up at Craig. Her eyebrows furrowed. She rubbed the back of her leg. No tenderness. Nothing. What in the world?

   “Hurt bad?” he said. He shook his head in an effort to commiserate. Then he stepped back and leaned forward with his hands on his knees to give her a little space. Maybe he thought she might get sick again.

   She looked up at him. Had she dreamed the whole thing? No. She had heard her muscle rip. She had felt the shot of pain. It had happened to her two other times in her life, and she knew precisely what it was.

   She decided not to answer Craig. It was just so strange. After a few seconds he lifted out his hand and she leaned into it expecting the pain to kick in, but it didn’t. Once she was on the piazza, she thanked him and he headed back to his cab. Then she unlocked the door, walked in the house with her heels firmly planted on the hardwood floor.

   Was she fine?

   She shook her right leg out. She walked. She did a few lunges, then jumped up and down several times, which caused Mac to bark and run into the foyer where he stopped, stared, and tilted his head as if he were as confused as she was.

   Had Reverend Summerall’s prayer been answered?

   “How was your run?” Jackson handed her a chocolate croissant in a waxy little bag. He was back sooner than she expected.

   How many calories in a chocolate croissant? Way too many for a gal beating back a middle-age paunch in the midst of the holiday season. And how was her run? Well, she wanted to tell him the whole story, but something held her back. He had made it clear since she started going to church with Scottie that he had no interest in religion. He wasn’t going to stop her. It didn’t bother him that she went. He just didn’t want her to expect him to follow along with all of that. He had a mission, after all, and he was focused.

   He cocked his head. “Your jog all right, baby?”

   She looked into his bright green eyes. They blinked slowly. It was the first time they had made eye contact today.

   “Amazing,” she finally said. She smiled and lovingly squeezed his shoulder. Then she gently accepted the little waxy bag and headed to the pantry where Anarosa kept her purse.

Book Review - A Sound Among the Trees

2011-10-12T10:52:00.000-07:00

A mansion with layers of history, and a family who has lived there for multiple generations. For family ancestor and Civil War-era Susannah Page, that house had not been such a pleasant haven. She was rumored to be a spy for the North and was accused of being a traitor.

These days her great-granddaughter Adelaide is the current matriarch of the Holly Oak house. But she doesn't think that Susannah's ghost haunts the mansion looking for something. She just suspects that the house holds a grudge on its tragic past.

And now Marielle Bishop from Arizona is marrying into the family. It's not long before she comes to believe that the house brings a great deal of strife to the women who live within its walls. With Adelaide very superstitious and the family’s roots compromised, Marielle feels as if she has to sort out the truth when it comes to Susannah and the Holly Oak mansion - all while trying to persuade herself that the sacrifices she made for love were worth all the ghost talk.

Admittedly when I first started this novel it didn't seem very exciting and I almost stopped after about 30 pages, but thankfully I did not. As you dig down deeper into the story it gets more and more intriguing. The book is split into five different parts. The only real complaint I had was that part four was extraordinarily long and dragged on a bit.

The characters were quite interesting and the story was very original. Having never read a novel like this, I found it to be a refreshing treat. I have a few of Susan Meissner's books but haven't gotten to them as of yet and this one was a great introduction. More of her books will be reviewed in the future. Not being able to divulge much about what goes on in the book is tough - you could easily give away most of the book in your excitement if you weren't careful! It's a great selection if you are a fan of historical fiction.

It is out now, so go check it out!

free money!

2011-10-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

So I like coupons, they are great cause its free money. Some are great for free meals. That’s why the month of October is so great! Its the boys birthday month and then we get free date night meals! I'm so stoked about it.

We are going to benihanas on Wednesday. Then we have one that will be for the keg and claim jumpers. There is free ice cream coupons and more meal coupons from other places, like red robin.

Along the same line is restaurant.com I LOVE their coupons. They have such good deals. And the best part is to wait til the certificates are like 2 and 3 bucks a piece. Its a steal! We have a few of those and I’m excited to go to dinners with those coupons too. Sometimes getting a good deal on a meal is a high.

Another good thing I think is entertainment books. They have real good deals in those too. You just have to wait until the books go on a good sale.

Now since I’m all about coupons and good deals. Free money is good too. So there is swagbucks, mypoints and now superpoints. They are sites that you accumulate points on and get free gift cards! The boy and I just made a purchase on amazon with the free points its so exciting.

If anyone wants an invite to superpoints leave an email or click on these links:

http://superpoints.com/wrpgs/nksr8q

http://superpoints.com/wrpgs/77ztou

http://superpoints.com/wrpgs/whrfhb

its such a great thing and fast to get that free money. Love it!

i'm just sad.

2011-10-10T14:03:00.001-07:00

I'm sad, its just a fact its not the weather cause I love fall and sweaters and scarves and such. But this is because of a best friend. I have one best friend we will call him robot for the sake of this entry.

Well for the last few years communication has been scarce and its different because we used to talk pretty much every day and now there is nothing. Won't call, text or message back and basically hes just being a really huge idiot towards me. I dunno why after almost 14 years of friendship this is happening. But then again there is a girl on his end. Yeah I have a boyfriend but I never cut anyone off.

It just really makes me sad that he can't take the 30 seconds to write a text or at leas t let me know hes still alive or talk to me cause he claims we are best friends and we were. But I don't know anymore. It really makes me sad.

Yes I have the boy but I don't really have many or any people to talk to other than him, I love him dearly but sometimes it'd be nice to have my other friends to talk to when the boy isn't around. I don't even really know what to do about it i'm just super sad. I wish I could fix it and I wish sometimes I wouldn't get screwed over with these 10+ year friendships. But I dunno what else to do I don't know how to stop it when I can't get communication back from the other person.

That is my depressing post for the day. I will be back maybe tomorrow with happy stuff.

2011-10-08T12:32:00.000-07:00

Today's Wild Card author is:

Lisa Troyer

and the book:

A Place to Belong: Out of Our Comfort Zone and Into God's Adventure

Barbour Books (September 1, 2011)

***Special thanks to Audra Jennings, Senior Media Specialist, The B&B Media Group for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Radio personality, recording artist, speaker and author Lisa Troyer finds herself heart-deep in ministries that are changing lives forever. Her incredibly successful Circle of Friends women’s ministry, formed over a decade ago, is growing in all directions. With partners Dawn Yoder and Jocelyn Hamsher, Lisa and her Circle of Friends offer women’s conferences, counseling services, worship music, life skills classes and marriage/family resources. No matter the outlet or the venue, Lisa uses her gift of encouragement, her influence and her resources to open doors for women everywhere to discover their significance and belonging through Christ.

Active on the business side of the music industry for many years, Lisa worked as a copyright administrator for what is now Provident/Integrity Music, as well as a consultant for well-known European Christian recording artists. In Nashville, she also sang demos for songwriters, but never dreamed of recording music herself.

After several years in Nashville, much to everyone’s surprise, including her own, Lisa made the decision to return home to join the family business and explore what kind of ministry God had planned for her. As Lisa began to develop a deeper, more intimate relationship with God and, subsequently, became more involved with the steady stream of hurting women God placed in her path, she knew that she had found her calling.

Lisa’s passion for God, authentic love for people and undeniable giftings have landed her dead center in the middle of a burgeoning ministry beyond her wildest expectations. She lives in Berlin, Ohio, with husband and best friend Bob, and their two precious children, Jillian and Christian.

Visit the author's website.

SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Every woman needs a place to belong—and that’s the underlying theme of the new book from Lisa Troyer, president of Circle of Friends Ministries, singer/songwriter and radio host. In A Place to Belong: Out of Our Comfort Zone and into God’s Adventure (Barbour Publishing), Troyer shares her own journey to acceptance as well as the story of a group of dynamic “women helping women” who call themselves the Circle of Friends. Troyer encourages readers to form their own circle of friends, a safe place of truth and love where women can develop lasting relationships and discover together the purposes of God for their lives.

Though refreshingly warm and simple, A Place to Belong is far from shallow. Troyer’s passion to lead others into the bottomless love of God compels her to plunge deeply into the heart of the issues all women face, but most keep to themselves. With tendencies toward depression, anxiety attacks and an eating disorder, she knows firsthand the bondage of secrecy and shame. “Living with a secret,” Troyer admits, “doesn’t make it go away. It doesn’t change your heart. As well hidden as your secret it, that is how deeply lonely you will be. I’ve been there. I know it’s true.”

In A Place to Belong, she explores five principles that address the heart-needs of women today:

* Acceptance, embarking on adventure in relationship

* Authenticity, exchanging the familiar for the extraordinary

* Affirmation, enriching the lives of those around you

* Accountability, receiving the comfort of companionship

* Action, stepping into the journey and walking into the purpose

By learning to apply these concepts, women will not only experience freedom themselves but will also develop a biblical, transformational ministry to lead others within their own sphere of influence to freedom as well.

Product Details:

List Price: $14.99
Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: Barbour Books (September 1, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1616265051
ISBN-13: 978-1616265052

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

I Had a Secret

This is my story. Acceptance means you can tell yours.

Day after day for four years in high school, I felt his eyes on me. His aftershave lingered in the aisle as he walked past rows of students, and I remember what his presence felt like when he stood close to me.
I kept his secret all that time and for many years afterward. Protecting him was not my agenda. I thought I was protecting myself.

I was not going to be one of those girls.

I was not going to get that kind of reputation.

He was a married man, and I was not going to give in to what he asked of me.
School is supposed to be safe, for crying out loud. He had no business doing the things he did, and I knew that at the time. But I was fourteen, a freshman in high school, and I didn’t want to walk the halls in my smalltown high school and have everybody see the cloud of inappropriateness that hovered over me. Who would whisper behind my back? Who would

pull away from me if they knew?

So I kept quiet.
He asked me out, and I kept quiet. He made physical passes at me, and I kept quiet. He offered to purchase alcohol for a friend, and I, sadly, accepted the offer. I remember the warm spring day in early May of my sophomore year when he asked if I needed anything for the weekend and suggested he join me for a drink. And I kept quiet. He looked at me in that way, and I kept quiet. I felt ashamed and confused, and knew this was wrong, but I kept quiet. I sat in his classes every year and earned awards. He was part of my day, part of my routine existence, and no one but my best friend ever suspected the things he suggested to me in private moments. She did not know everything, but she knew something was going on. But she kept quiet, too.
I wasn’t the first girl with whom this teacher behaved in inappropriate ways, and I wouldn’t be the last. I knew just enough about his previous victims to know their reputations were trashed. He was the predator, but they paid the price, and I was not going to let that happen to me.

So I said nothing.
But I had chronic stomachaches, repeated severe colds, wanted to sleep all the time, and hated going to school. School was never my favorite activity to begin with. I preferred to read what I was interested in and found little wonder in things that didn’t apply to my focus du jour. The heightened emotional pressure in high school made attendance even less motivating. My junior and senior years were especially difficult. My interest in music was increasing, but so were my level of frustration and signs of clinical depression, though I didn’t know the phrase at the time. I wonder now how I didn’t flunk out of school. Two elements of relief were my choral and humanities classes. I enjoyed singing and reading Wuthering Heights and other classic literature. I was thankful for the positive influence and encouragement of Penny McKey and Connie Evans, true educators in every sense of the word. Despite my emotional challenges, I managed to make the honor roll and progress toward graduation.

When I was a senior in high school, my stomach trouble took the form of a duodenal ulcer. Because the symptoms persisted after the ulcer healed, the gastroenterologist suggested my parents explore a psychological reason for my illness. I started seeing a psychologist, who officially diagnosed my clinical depression. His practice was not faith-based, but he had studied for the priesthood before getting married, and he encouraged my own faith. It was a safe place for me to say I was not okay without saying why I was not okay.

I still kept the secret.
After a while, my father had his doubts that the psychologist was doing any good, but I had recently turned eighteen. By the grace of God, the psychologist reminded me I no longer needed my parents’ permission to see him, and he offered to treat me for free for a few months. We spent a lot of time talking about my poor dating choices and areas of my life where I felt I had little control. Looking back now, I realize the therapist probably suspected more than he ever expressed. He was waiting for me to be ready to talk.
But still I said nothing.
My free visits with the psychologist got me through the months until graduation, and then I was free from that environment. I never had to see that teacher again. I was off to the Art Institute of Atlanta, far away from my small Midwestern town, to prepare for a career on the business side of

the music industry.
You can’t just walk away.
Just because I did not reveal what happened during high school did not mean the experience had no effect on me. It was years before I told anyone the whole sordid truth and faced the huge impact it had. The depression that began during those years has been a specter for all of my adult life.
On the outside, things looked good. My dad wanted me to take his financial investment in my education seriously, so he said, “No bad grades and no partying, or the money stops.” I didn’t intend to give him a reason to cut me off. I now enjoyed school. I was free from my tormentor. I could be anybody I wanted to be. People who struggle with depression and don’t take prescribed medications tend to medicate themselves with something else, and that’s what I did. I plunged into a whole new social life where no one had even heard of my school or the predator who gave me an ulcer. I amassed a new cadre of friends and relished the freedom of living in an apartment by myself. I even dated a young man who presumed we would marry someday—although I knew I would never marry him. Social activities stimulated me and became the core around which my life revolved. I looked forward—never back. I was grown up now, I thought. The past was behind me. I was never going to live in my hometown again, so I had no reason to dwell on the things that happened there. After graduation from the exhaustive one-year program and an internship with the retail division of Zondervan, a publisher with a music arm, I was ready to take on the world.

In those days, a career in the music business meant New York, Los Angeles, or Nashville. My parents objected to Los Angeles, and I had no desire to move to New York. That left Nashville. So off I went with a classmate. We planned to share expenses. Neither of us had a job, nor any

prospects, but the hope of youth springs eternal. However, my friend soon found that Nashville was not the place for her and resumed her vocation of ministry and education. So I was on my own.

And I still carried my secret.
In Nashville, at the ripe old age of twenty, I found a niche on Music Row, a historic area that is home to hundreds of enterprises involved in country, gospel, and Christian music. Record labels, publishing houses, recording studios, video production companies—they’re all there. I found a job singing demos for a studio in a music publishing company, but ultimately I wanted to work for a Christian company.

I kept inquiring at Benson Records, a major Christian music publishing company that belonged to Zondervan at the time. I grew up in a family business, and I knew the easiest department to get into was sales, where the turnover is always high. So I just kept asking. Eventually I got a job.

The woman who hired me said it was not because I had any experience that impressed her. Rather, my tenacity captured her attention. So I jumped into

the sales department ready to give it everything I had. Six weeks later, a job in the copyright administration department opened, and she recommended me for that promotion since I’d had some experience on Music Row with similar tasks.
My stubbornness paid off, and I had what I wanted. I was independent. I was out of the Midwest countryside. I was on my way to a career on the business side of the music industry. I worked for a Christian company.
I stayed in Nashville long enough to know I didn’t want to work for someone else the rest of my life. The family dairy business that was the backdrop of my childhood had imprinted me with a different mind-set. I had proven I could bulldog my way into the music scene in Nashville, but for what? My parents ran their own business and employed dozens of other people. In addition to his solid business, my dad was always pursuing interests he loved. He even bought a plane. I understand my father. He is never one to shy away from a challenge or an adventure. I wanted to find that elusive intersection between work that paid the bills and being involved with activities that brought meaning to my life. When Dad invited me to return home and join the family business, I took him up on it. I could have the security of the business behind me while also exploring what kind of ministry God had planned for me.

When I chose to move back to my hometown, people thought I had lost my marbles. Didn’t I realize how hard it was to get a job at one of the country’s largest Christian music companies? If I walked away now, I might never get another chance.
My broken past was behind me. At least, I convinced myself this was true. I was twenty-four years old—a lifetime away from that high school girl with a secret—and embarking on independent music industry consulting. I worked for Cliff Richard, one of England’s most popular recording artists, from a base in the rural Midwest. I also jumped right into making cold calls to find new distribution outlets for specialty items of the family business and turned out to be pretty good at the job.

But I still had a secret.
Secrets make you lonely.
Secrets can destroy from the inside. When I kept my secret, I thought I was protecting myself, but instead I isolated myself from people who cared about me. I put up a wall to try to keep myself safe, but instead I kept out people who would have wanted to help. I regret all the years I didn’t tell my mother what happened. As a teenager, I wanted to avoid the attention that surely would come from exposing the predator—my mother would have

made sure he lost his job. He continued to prey on high school girls and eventually was found out. I just didn’t want to be the one who made that happen, and I was clueless about how deeply the events would affect me as I launched into adulthood. As hard as I tried to pretend that what happened didn’t matter after I left high school, the episodes haunted me for years.
All these years later, I still feel naked telling this story, even without including the details. But I hope we are going to travel together on the road to a transforming life in God, so you need to know that this happened to me. In the pages ahead, you’ll read about a lot of heartache. Some of it is mine, some of it reflects the lives of women I know, and some of it rises from the pages of the Bible. And yes, there are some sordid details God thinks we need to know!

Keeping a secret doesn’t make it go away.

Putting on your mask doesn’t change what’s in your heart.

As well hidden as your secret is, that’s how deeply lonely you will be. I’ve been there. I know it’s true.

So I tell you my secret and invite you into my journey with God to encourage you to step into your own journey with God. I’m not suggesting you publish your innermost wrestling in the daily newspaper or on a blog or a billboard. But I do hope you will begin to see the bountiful blessing that can come to your life if you unclench your fists and let go of whatever you have been hiding from yourself. From others. From God.
Circle of Friends is a ministry of women who both seek and offer a place to belong, a place of acceptance, a place of truth and love.

This is my story. Acceptance means you can tell yours.

Sorry for the dead blog lately.

2011-10-05T16:09:00.001-07:00

Life got really busy and I just didn't feel like writing honestly. This have been insane also. So lets give a little update.

The Garden:

what a crappy year for a garden in Seattle. My garden did pretty crappy honestly. I only got about 4 or 5 zucchinis and cucumbers. The carrots still aren't growing very rapidly. The green onions are not going very fast either. The tomatoes finally started going but now its colder and rainy so I may have to take them off the plants to ripen inside. My kale has done amazing though! And the leeks I have are still growing. I might need to thin those out though. But most everyone around here that did have a garden had a sucky year for it. Well we'll try next year.

Reviews:

well I have now gotten caught up sort of in my reading. Now I gotta get on the ball on posting reviews. If its not one thing its another!

A rant about religion:

its something that always bothers me when someone is being super religious. When I woke up I was annoyed. And then I had a song lyric pop into my head.

“No one rocks the boat, It was never your point to get people saved, can't tamper with the walls of their sterile Christian bubble. you pad yourself with fluff just because you're afraid. I'm not afraid to point the finger now, the choir's so used to the preaching anyhow. “

I had been reading a bit of Jon Acuff's “Stuff Christians Like” and its hilarious. A lot of things he writes about is so classic of religious people. But at the same time it makes me sick. Its like some thing if you avoid the thing that gives you temptation that you can be rid of temptation completely. And that is not true, temptation will follow you no matter what. You just have to stare it right in the face. A lot of people go way overboard with the whole thing. Even just with facebook, its not even that bad yeah there is some stuff on there that could just be eliminated but you learn to deal with it. Just like you can't eliminate non christians, you can't eliminate whatever is on facebook. I get that modest clothing is something that a lot of people talk about. But also you can go too far with that also. When you are preaching about it constantly it might be too far. Those are my two cents for now.

Amanda Knox:

now this subject hits close to home, literally across the alley in the back of my house. She is my neighbor, her family lives behind me and I was so anxious about the verdict on Monday. And I totally burst into tears at the verdict, happy tears. It is SO amazing I’m so happy for them. But the neighborhood is now sort of a zoo. Yesterday it was difficult with news trucks everywhere and people gawking wanting to get on TV its pretty annoying. I am so glad she isn't at her moms house, and in an undisclosed location. But still with all these paparazzi people around its just pretty annoying. We just want to make sure no one tampers with the house or comes in our alley. Also this morning I was opening my curtain and there was a camera guy on our street camera almost aimed at my window and I was still in my pj's with bed head and was like “oh crap” so I guess now I have to shower before opening curtains. Haha pretty stupid but it is what it is. I just hope she stays safe and gets the rest she needs.

I think that’s about all for now.

First Wild Card Tour

2011-09-27T11:49:00.000-07:00

Today's Wild Card author is:

Kim Cash Tate

and the book:

Cherished

Thomas Nelson (August 30, 2011)

***Special thanks to Audra Jennings, Senior Media Specialist, The B&B Media Group for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Kim Cash Tate was born and raised in the Washington, D.C. area. Her mother, a manager with AT&T, and her father, an educator, divorced when she was young. Even after the divorce, one thing her parents agreed on was the importance of education. She attended both public and private Catholic schools, and college was a given. Tate chose the University of Maryland.

After completing her undergraduate degree, she distinguished herself as a law student at George Washington University. She was invited to join the Journal staff, and a summer job at a respected law firm in her beloved Washington, D.C. followed by a one-year clerkship with a federal judge in Madison.

Tate’s law career took off in Madison. Once the clerkship ended, she was hired on at a large firm. In spite of her success, she was plagued by constant feelings of discontentment and loneliness for the racially diverse environment she left behind in D.C. She began seeking faith, simply as a means of maintaining sanity. After she and Bill married, the couple began attending a local AME church, and they both felt Jesus calling.

When her children were young, Tate left her thriving law career to stay home. A passionate and persuasive communicator, she tried her hand at writing. More Christian than African-American shares her story of finding her identity in Christ rather than in her race, which had been a major focus for her. Her first novel was Heavenly Places, followed by Faithful and her newest release, Cherished. Tate was a speaker for Women of Faith in both 2010 and 2011.

Visit the author's website.

SHORT BOOK DESCRIPTION:

As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Kim Cash Tate explores Psalm 103:12 as she takes her readers down the path to God’s forgiveness and reconciliation in her newest novel, Cherished. Readers will discover that God can still use them in spite of their worst choices. And He doesn’t just forgive them, but they are truly cherished!

Tate’s story will show her readers how God can bring beauty from ashes. She has a unique way of weaving her characters’ lives together, leading back to one great point—God’s tremendous mercy and grace. In the words of one of her characters, “I wasn’t sure what to expect. I felt like it would take a while to work my way back into God’s good graces, but it was like…”—she flung wide her arms—“…He just embraced me.” We too can be embraced by the same great love when we learn that true forgiveness for ALL of our sins is right before us.

Growing up in Saint Louis, Kelli London dreamed of becoming a songwriter and glorifying God with her songs of praise. But after falling into sin, she walks away from her dreams. Heather Anderson’s life has spun out of control—first an affair with a married man and then a one-night stand with the drummer of a popular Christian band. Broken and alone, she discovers the only one who can save her. Brian Howard grew up as a science geek. But after making the worst mistake of his life after high school, he finds forgiveness in Christ and is being led down a completely different path. Now he must choose whether to continue pursuing his PhD in biochemistry or to become a full time Christian rapper.

Product Details:

List Price: $15.99
Paperback: 336 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (August 30, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1595548556
ISBN-13: 978-1595548559

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:

Kelli London took her place on the piano bench and waited for her cue, grateful that her jittery hands were hidden from the crowd. She shouldn’t have agreed to do this, but she loved her brother and had never seen him happier. How could she say no to singing at his wedding?

But it was the song Cedric had asked her to sing, one he’d heard only by chance. He had no idea what it meant to her. He didn’t know that singing it would unleash memories of the last person she ever wanted to think about.
Laughter rose from the pews, and Kelli looked up, wondering what she’d missed.
“. . . and I’m sure Cedric wants me to get to the vows ASAP,” Pastor Lyles was saying, “so they can get to that kiss they’ve been waiting for.”
Kelli had only met the pastor once before, at her brother Lindell’s wedding last fall, but it didn’t take long to love his spirit and his style. A black man in his late fifties, he’d started Living Word Community Church decades ago and watched it grow into a multi-ethnic megachurch. At least a couple hundred members were here today. Kelli guessed none of them thought twice about the various hues and accents that had gathered to see this black couple wed. She loved that spirit too.

Cedric was shaking his head with a shamefaced grin as the pastor called him out. Cyd was smiling up at him, gorgeous, beaming like the bright light she’d become in Cedric’s life.

Pastor Lyles continued. “But I don’t think he’ll mind one last song, and it’s a special one, written by his sister.”

Kelli drew a deep breath as Cedric and Cyd smiled over at her, Lindell and Stephanie too—the flip side of last fall. Then Stephanie and Lindell were the bride and groom, and Cyd and Cedric were maid of honor and best man, which was how they met. Kelli loved the story, how Cyd turned forty on her younger sister’s wedding day, thinking she’d never marry herself. Now here she was—a June bride. It was romantic that her brothers would now be married to sisters, but it somehow added to her melancholy, that each of them had found the love of his life.

Kelli gazed at the piano keys, and knowing they had to, her fingers tapped the first notes. She fought to stay in the moment, in the church. Her eyes swept Cyd and Cedric, imagined the lyrics were just for them . . .
I will love you till the stars don’t shine

And I will love you till the oceans run dry

I will love you till you know every why

I will, I will

Her eyes closed, and he was there. A shiver of remembrance danced down her arms. She could still see that distant look in his eyes, could even hear him, that tone of indifference that echoed forever in her head. Kelli opened her eyes to capture another image—any image—but he was everywhere now. And her heart allowed itself to be crushed all over again.
I will love you like an endless stream

A million miles won’t take your heart from me

I will love you every breath you breathe

I will, I will

Almost to the bridge, Kelli could feel her emotions cresting with the song. She closed her eyes again as they took over, filling her voice, magnifying her range, powering her through. She played the final chords with the salt of tears on her lips and bowed her head at the last note . . . and heard—applause? She looked out and saw the guests on their feet and Cedric and Cyd fully turned, facing her—Cyd wiping tears from her cheeks. With her own anxiety about singing it, Kelli hadn’t given thought to whether people might actually like the song.

She pulled a tissue from the box atop the piano, dabbed her cheeks, and blew her nose, then muscled a heart-heavy smile to acknowledge everyone’s kindness. When she moved back to the front pew beside her mother, only then did the guests stop clapping and sit.

“When did you write that?” her mother asked, patting her thigh. “That was beautiful.”
“Thanks, Mom. I wrote it . . . a long time ago.”

She turned her gaze to the ceremony, her heart beating a little faster still, puzzled by the response to the song. It coaxed a different memory to the surface, and as Cyd and Cedric exchanged vows, Kelli thought about her long-ago dream of writing music that God would somehow use. Then the better part of her brain kicked in,

reminding her that she’d left songwriting behind, that she knew better than to dream.
That all those dreams had turned to dust.

“Kelli! Girrrl . . .”
Kelli looked up—midpivot in the Electric Slide—and saw Stephanie threading her way through the line dancers in her champagne-colored dress. Soon as the song started, it seemed everybody left tables and mingled to claim a spot on the parquet floor. Kelli waved her sister-in-law over.

“I’ve been looking for you.” Stephanie scooted between Kelli and Devin, a nine-year-old cousin, as rows of people sidestepped to the right. “I haven’t had a chance to tell you . . . girl, you sang that song. I had no idea—hold up, am I doing this right?” She was headed a different direction from everyone else. “Why am I even

out here? I hate this stupid dance.”

Kelli laughed. “Back, Steph. We’re going back.”

“Oh.” Stephanie checked Devin to get in sync, then leaned her head Kelli’s way again, her voice elevated. “Anyway, I told Lindell I couldn’t believe he didn’t tell me about that song, ’cause I would’ve had you sing it at our wedding. And he said he’d never heard it . . . and then I couldn’t believe that.”
“I know. Crazy, right? This way, Steph. Pivot left.”

Stephanie was behind her now, and Kelli turned to make sure she was following, but Devin had it under control.

Like a traffic cop, he moved his hands left, then right to direct her which way to go next. “And pivot,” he announced, to the amusement of those around them.
Side by side with Stephanie again, Kelli continued. “Lindell and Cedric had already moved out of the house by the time I started writing songs in high school, so it was easy to kind of keep my music to myself.” She shrugged. “Cedric overheard it because I didn’t know he was there.”
“Hmph,” Stephanie said. “If I had that kind of talent, everybody would know about it. They’d have to tell me to be quiet.”

The music switched, and they could hear people near the center of the floor cheering, “Go, Cyd! Go, Cedric! Go, Cyd! Go, Cedric!”

Kelli and Stephanie craned their necks, moving toward the action.

“Oh, goodness,” Stephanie said, laughing. “Look at your brother. He’s at it again.”
Kelli laughed too, remembering Cedric and Cyd on the dance floor at Stephanie and Lindell’s reception. Now the two had cut a wide swath in the middle of the floor with a different line dance, this one a little livelier.

Kelli and Stephanie worked their way to a spot in the inner circle.

“Have you seen this version?” Stephanie asked.

Kelli nodded. “But you know Cedric’s gonna add his own twist.”

Instead of a simple sidestep, Cedric led Cyd in bouncy moves to the left, with a slide before going right. And instead of a normal pivot, they did some kind of kick, kick, turn—with Cedric twirling Cyd into a two-step before moving back to the line dance, all of it seamless. The crowd was fired up.
After a couple of rounds, Cedric spotted Kelli and pulled her to the center.
“I don’t know if you can hang with a twenty-five-year-old, big brother.” Although Cedric was a fit forty-two, Kelli didn’t miss an opportunity to tease him about his age. “I’d hate to embarrass you in front of your guests.”
“Oh, you got jokes? We’ll see about that, baby sis.”

Cyd led the cheers this time as Kelli whipped some different moves on him. Cedric paused, then mimicked every last one to let her know she couldn’t show him up. Lindell dragged Stephanie out there—literally—and Kelli was in stitches watching them try to copy what she and Cedric were doing. Soon everyone on the

floor had joined in again, and then the music switched to Motown, which got its own cheers.
Cedric draped one arm around Kelli and the other around Cyd and led them off the floor. They stopped at the bridal party table, which had emptied of all but Dana, one of Cyd’s bridesmaids.

“Why aren’t you on the dance floor?” Cedric asked. “We need all the forty-and-over folk representing.”

Dana glared at him. “Let’s see how well you ‘represent’ with some heels on. My feet are killing me.” Then she nodded toward the dance floor. “My husband left me. He’s out there with the kids. And last I saw, Scott wasn’t representing too well either. He looked almost as bad as Stephanie with that Electric Slide.”

“I heard that, Dana,” Stephanie said, walking up with Lindell. “I could learn the dumb dance if I cared to. And since you’re trying to clown me, I might do it just to keep my black rhythm points. Can’t have a white guy showing me up.”

Dana got a kick out of that, laughing as auburn wisps fell about her face. “How about a white girl? Let’s tell the deejay to play it again and see who’s got it.”
Stephanie eased into a seat. “Uh, no thanks. I always told you, you’re one of those black white girls. You can go on the dance floor.”

Dana eyed the dancers out there. “Well, pray for Mackenzie. I think the poor thing takes after Scott. Look at them.”

Kelli’s heart was smiling. Because she lived out of state, she didn’t know these women well—not even her sisters-in-law—but from her brief interactions, including last night’s rehearsal dinner, she could tell she would like them.
Cyd pulled out a chair and sat, her beautiful gown, passed down from her mother, swishing over the sides. “Ahh . . . think I can get away with sitting like this for maybe five minutes?”

Cedric massaged her shoulders. “You’re good. The Jackson Five’s got everybody occupied.”
Dana touched Kelli’s arm. “The bridal table was talking about you earlier.”
“Me? Why?” Kelli took a seat.

“Are you kidding? That song. It was beautiful.”

Kelli blushed. “Thank you.”
“That’s my little sister.” Cedric beamed.

“Mine too!” Lindell said, giving her shoulder a squeeze. “So proud of you, girl.” He looked at the others. “Just got her master’s too, from UT–Austin.”
“I heard,” Dana said. “Is your degree in music?”

Kelli shook her head. “One’s in communications and the other’s in public relations.”
“Wow, two?” Dana nodded. “That’s awesome.”

“Well . . . not really. Just means I didn’t know what I wanted to do.” Kelli didn’t mind admitting it. “But I’m done being a professional student. I’m looking for a job now—”

“—in Texas.” Cedric’s tone made clear what he thought of that. “What part of Texas?” Stephanie asked. “Are you trying to stay in Austin?”

“I’ve been looking at possibilities in Austin and Houston . . .and Dallas.”
“Mostly Dallas, I’d bet,” Cedric said. “That’s where her boyfriend is.” He looked around playfully. “Where is he anyway? I wanted to meet him, see if he measures up. What’s his name? Miller?”

Kelli smirked at her big brother. “Miles. Miles Reed. He wanted to meet you all too, but he had a conflict.”

“I’m sure we’ll get another opportunity,” Cedric said, “if I can get you to move back to St. Louis.”

Cyd perked up. “Ooh, Kelli, I’d love that. Any chance?”

“I . . . doubt it.” Kelli hedged to be polite; her mind had said a fast no. She hadn’t lived in St. Louis since she left for college, and the distance had been good. Her mother had relocated to Little Rock to care for her mother, so Kelli had gone there on school breaks.

“How’s the job market in Texas?” Cedric asked. “Improved any?”

Cedric knew the answer perfectly well. He was a VP at a head-hunting firm. He’d made some calls for her, but nothing had materialized.

“Not exactly,” Kelli admitted. “I’ve been looking since early in the year, and, well . . . it’s nearing the end of June.”

Lindell rubbed his chin. “I’m thinking you can be unemployed in St. Louis just as well as in Austin.”

Cedric gave a big nod to his brother. “Better than in Austin. In St. Louis, you can be unemployed and hang out with your brothers.”
Cyd raised a hand. “And sisters. Don’t forget about us.”

“All of us,” Dana said. “We’d love to plug you into Daughters’ Fellowship.”

“What’s that?” Kelli asked.

“It started years ago with Dana, Phyllis, and me.” Cyd pointed toward the dance floor at her other bridesmaid. “Real informal. We’d do potluck and talk about—sometimes cry about—what God was doing in our lives. Stephanie crashed the party last year.” Cyd smiled at her younger sister. “It’s evolved into kind of a Bible study/gabfest.”

“Emphasis on gab,” Cedric said. “Amazing how two hours can turn into five—every single time. You’d think you’d run out of things to talk about.”
“Now, now, brother,” Lindell said, “don’t exaggerate. I think it was four and a half hours last time.”

Cedric and Lindell shared a laugh as the women pounced.

“We’re praying too, you know,” Dana said. “Getting that fuel we need to be the best we can be.”

“Lindell knows.” Stephanie gave him the eye. “I left the house with an attitude before that last meeting. Came back changed. Didn’t I?”

Lindell threw up his hands. “Hey, I’m not complaining. I might be the biggest DF fan at the table. Stephanie’s not the same woman I married.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Babe, that’s a good thing! I’m just sayin’.”

Kelli laughed as Lindell backpedaled. For years her brothers had been busy with their careers, living the bachelor life. Hadn’t occurred to them or her that they should live near one another, be a part of each other's lives. But now they were both settled down, with wives Kelli would love to know better. She’d always wanted sisters. And it was strange that she, Cyd, and Stephanie kind of looked alike—all of them tall with honey brown skin and long brown hair.

And Daughters’ Fellowship sounded great. Her own relationship with God wasn’t where it should be. She’d known that for some time. Just wasn’t sure how to get it back on the right track. The thought of getting together with these women, talking and learning from them, felt like water to her parched soul.

If only it were in another city . . .

Kelli sighed as she looked around the table at the laughter, the ribbing, the love. Did she really want to stay in Austin, away from all of this?

And what about Miles? They’d been dating almost a year. Although he’d graduated from UT–Austin last December and moved back to Dallas, the distance didn’t seem so great with them both in Texas. Still, they were already several hours apart. Would a few more make a huge difference?

Kelli looked up as her mother stopped at their table.

“Hey, it’s my gorgeous mother,” Cedric said, placing an arm around her.
“No, it’s my gorgeous mother,” Lindell said, hugging her other side.

Francine London glowed with pride. “You boys are something else,” she said. “And I didn’t come to see y’all. I came to see how my daughters-in-law are doing.”
“Oh, it’s like that now?” Cedric asked. “I get married, and I get kicked to the curb?”
Francine laughed, keeping her arms around her sons’ waists. “I’m wondering what’s gonna happen when you all start having my grandchildren. I’m not gonna like being all the way in Little Rock.”

“You need to move back too,” Lindell said.

Francine dismissed it with a shake of the head. “Your grandmother’s not doing well, can’t get around, so we’re better off staying put.”
“Well, help us convince your daughter to move back,” Cedric said. “We’ve been working on her.”

Francine looked at Kelli, nodding. “I was thinking about that today, how nice it would be if you could be around your brothers and their wives. You know I’m big on family.”

“Yes, I know, Mom.” Kelli cut them off at the pass. “So . . . which one of you would be willing to let your little sister move in?”

2Straighttalk

2011-09-17T17:00:00.001-07:00

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giveaway winner

2011-09-05T15:26:00.001-07:00

sorry about the wait but the winner was ink-stained wretch. leave an email address so i can contact you!

CD Review "Young Love" by Mat Kearney

2011-09-01T14:08:00.000-07:00

Now a new review! I have a copy of Mat Kearney's new album “young love”

I’ve always loved his music so I was stoked to get a copy of this CD to review. His voice is so soothing. This new album is great its classic mat Kearney and there isn't anything to hate about it at all. Though the picture on the cover makes him look like a mime. And I think mime's are kind of creepy. So I’m not totally too fond of that.

But the music its great. Its only a 10 song CD, which is sorta disappointing. But they are great songs. I was unaware of him having new music out since I don't listen to radio much. But the single that is out “hey mama” is pretty amazing super upbeat and great. I think that my favorite other song is “ships in the night” it just makes me feel like I’m sitting out on the front porch looking out at a beach. Even though I’m really not.

All in all its a great CD you should go pick it up!

He also is going on a 40 city tour! Though hes not coming around here you should check to see if he will be coming near you! Do check out his website to find out the cities!

Thank you to One2One Network for providing me with this review copy of the album!

Well this last weekend was kind of a bummer.

2011-08-17T15:51:00.001-07:00

Didn't do a whole lot it was pretty packed with church and the boys homework. Bleck. Last week sometime I can't remember what day it was. But I had had enough of my hair it was too long in places and I just couldn't stand it so I went to get it cut at this new salon that was doing haircuts for 9.99. it sounded a bit scary but I heard good reviews so I went figured why not. The last haircut I got was kinda bad and it was 14.95. welll this haircut was SO much better. It made me happy that It was cheap and that it was great. It looks so much better. But she cut more than I anticipated off the length so that was kind of a bummer but its not bad.

This stupid crow is not shutting up so its distracting me. I'm already super distracted and slow going today. I really wish I could shoot that thing. Well not really but you get my frustration.

Also please check out my giveaway! I'd really like to actually have the giveaway and it not be a bust. Kinda depressing.

Lets see, well i'm starting to get caught up in my reading. So that’s great. But I want to read all these books all at once so its frustrating that I can't. Haha.

My garden is finally doing well. I had to yank out the cauliflower though because it was so infested with aphids. It was pointless. But hopefully my cucumbers make it they keep getting this mildew fungus and I am trying to stay on top of it but its hard. But the rest is starting to go great. I have a plan already for next year so thats cool. Not much else is going on. I plan to read books all night. I will probably knock out one and get halfway through another. That is my goal.

Young and in love by Ted Cunningham

2011-08-16T15:17:00.000-07:00

"What if We’ve Got This Purity Thing All Wrong?

In Young and In Love, pastor, author, and speaker Ted Cunningham boldly argues that young love should be celebrated, even promoted. Early marriages can be God’s will and often provide the key to sexual purity. With this in mind, Cunningham shares the secrets to a successful early marriage with those in their late teens and early twenties who are in love.

This book suits anyone experiencing young love who struggles with naysayers who dismiss or hinder a God-designed relationship. It also addresses young adults who struggle with the teachings of other popular books on abstinence or on delaying dating or marriage. And it offers parents and pastors who feel concerned about a relationship a source of wise counsel that carefully prepares young adults for a godly marriage."

In Young and in Love Ted Cunningham has some pretty bold views on love, more specifically young love. He thinks that it should be promoted and celebrated more than it is. Most people think early marriages are horrible and always end in divorce. But thats not even the issue. There are many factors that can end a marriage. Though people do give up a lot. Being young and married has nothing to do with it. There are a lot of secrets that Ted shares to have a successful early marriage or even just a relationship.

This book was a really great read, not only did it have a few quotes from Seattle pastor Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill. It was just really great advice for people in love. For me being in my late 20's there was a lot that I learned while reading this book. This is a book I wished I had when I was a teenager. There was a time when I would go read a lot of dating and relationship books to be prepared for when that time came. And this one would have been amazing to have. Its really great that young people now will have this to look through and read. There is so much to say about it. Because its so packed with great tips and advice. But you should just go pick it up, you will not regret it.

Tombstones and Banana Trees by Medad Birungi and Craig Borlase

2011-08-16T15:14:00.000-07:00

"Growing up with a violent father in the country of Uganda in the 1960s, Medad Birungi faced physical and emotional pain that few people can imagine––yet today he speaks of a revolutionary forgiveness we all can experience.

Once a boy who begged to die by the side of the road, once a teenager angry enough to kill, once a man broken and searching, today Medad is a testimony to God’s transforming power. Through his story of healing, Medad calls readers to find healing from their own emotional scars. As Medad’s remarkable journey shows, when people forgive each other, they are doing something truly radical. They are changing relationships, communities, countries. They are welcoming God into the corners of the human soul, where real revolution begins."

This memoir by Medad Birungi is so powerful. At times it left me speechless with all the things that happened in his life. It was truly heartbreaking. To think of all the experiences and things he had gone through, its truly baffling.

It was great to see how he rose about all of it. Now if you want to know what its about, Medad came from a not so great living situation, he lived in Uganda and he faced a lot of things that we couldn't even dream about. Having to live in a polygamous family, to being abused and left by his father. He dealt with drugs and drunkenness. All while hiding his problems from his mother. There was one day when his life had changed. He heard a choir come and speak at the school and something in him changed. Throughout all the hard times. God was always there. This story is well there isn't much to say cause there is so much to say that you don't want to say anything at all. Its really eye opening and encouraging that he could come out of all of that with such a great attitude and love for God.

easycanvasprints.com review and giveaway!

2011-08-12T10:00:00.000-07:00

Easycanvasprints.com contacted me wanting to provide me a canvas print for review. I was all for it! I was pretty excited.

Now for the website, you just pick the size of canvas you want, upload a picture and then figure out a few other options. And then order. Its simple. Now I thought it was gonna go real fast though it didn't go fast at all. It took me forever to get it to the way I wanted. And even so it wasn't a perfect as I wanted it to be when I uploaded the picture. It was pretty frustrating to be perfectly honest. But I got it to a point where I would be fine with it. It may have just been me and my perfectionism hah.

Anyhow, I ordered it and then got super super fast shipping. I was really impressed with the shipping time that was great. It was packed really well with a fragile sticker on the box which was great so it was kept nice and not damaged in shipping.

And here is the finished result:

I LOVE it, its so nice and cute. I've never had a picture turned into a canvas print so I didn't quite know what to expect but I’m really impressed with it. I love the picture we chose it just is great I don't have anywhere to put it up right now but in the future it will be great to hang up.

And now for the fun part! My very first giveaway! One of my readers can win an 8X10 or 10X8 canvas picture of their very own! There are only a few things to qualify for this.

You need to live in the US

follow Easy canvas prints on twitter

like easy canvas prints on facebook.

Be a follower on my blog.

Thanks and good luck! the giveaway will end August 31st!

Wow so the weekend was pretty great.

2011-08-10T15:55:00.001-07:00

Seafair was pretty great. It didn't start off very good. The boy was a bit cranky. We got through it though.

The hydro races and air show were great. I have so many pictures. On the downside I did miss some of the races I wanted to see. But its alright. We got some freebies which is always fun. And coupons! We decided to buy food there for lunch. And I got a foot long corn dog and I ate the whole thing. The boy and I had to have some talks and it was pretty good we just sat in my car for awhile after it was over and just talked it was different than before so it made me feel like we're getting somewhere with our issues.

Other than that the weekend was low key, yesterday I watched the kids at bible group like normal. Then after I went to the grocery store to get veggies. I needed some for what I was gonna make. I was also very happy to find a little package of risotto I have never had it and wanted to try a recipe in a cookbook I have. So I was happy to find a little package. The other big things of it are 10 bucks. And that’s crazy. But yeah so I’m excited to make that. But that is for another night. Last night I made some really amazing minestrone soup. Cooking is so fun. I need to make a beef stew that will be really great and thick. I gotta look that up though. And the other night the boy and I made zucchini bread but we put applesauce in it instead of oil. And its really weird. Its a spongy texture now. Its also really dark, but we had new nutmeg. The bottle of the nutmeg we had before was older and wasn't as potent as this one. So I don't really know what went wrong. Its not bad its just not the same as the other batches. Ah well.

Other than that I have a giveaway post coming up! I'm gonna post it in a few days so that’s cool. I'm just waiting for all these books to come in the mail. And tonight I’m just gonna read. Hopefully I can get somewhere farther in the book so I can get closer to not being behind anymore. That’s all for now!

Well since that last entry I’ve been doing alright.

2011-08-02T18:59:00.001-07:00

The boy and I have just been talking a lot. And the weekend was great! Um Saturday it was pretty hot and honestly I think that we fought a little and I don't really remember what else we did. I believe we played lego indiana jones haha. Love that game. I have a hankering to play it tonight actually.

Sunday we went to church, we served now that we are gonna do it every week its like back to normal I am so beyond grateful for that. I love those kids so much. Its good to know that they love us too. The little girl I used to watch, Callie she is so adorable I love that kid so much and she was having fun with the boy and I. Also we have another one that loves us. Our little violet she is three so she should be in the next room but she wouldn't make it in there honestly. She has a hard time paying attention shes just not ready for it. But we also have watched her and her brothers and sister once at their house. And it will probably become a regular thing so their parents can have a date night. They haven't had one uh I’m not sure the last time they did. But they have four kids and they probably haven't had a date night since they had two.. that’s a long time so it will be fun to do that for them.

Right now I’m waiting for my toenails to dry so I can put another coat of polish on them. I love that its so great.

Lets see, I’ve just been working on some things. I really am excited about stuff to come here on the blog. I have a giveaway coming up and a really awesome author feature/interview! I'm beyond excited. I will just have to be working on those soon. But whew its just exciting for me. So keep tuned in for that.

Other than that um I am getting things ready for seafair. The boy and I are going out for seafair weekend, we are going on Saturday, there are hydroplane races, expensive food, freebies, air shows. Its gonna be a blast. Last year it rained and this year it doesn't look like there will be rain anywhere in sight and I’m gonna get me a shaved ice. I'm REALLY excited. I've wanted one for a long time now. Last year I was gonna get one but it rained and I was already cold enough haha. But this is my year to relive my shaved ice childhood days!

Back to Sunday. So we did church, then we went out for lunch/breakfast it was SO good. And then we went for a walk at alki beach. It was a longlong walk cause we had to go to the bathroom but the bathrooms were on the opposite side of where we parked. So It was rough but in the end I think we walked at least 2 miles. I'm not sure I didn't really check it out. Then after we got home, we had gone to the store for some things, like rootbeer float supplies. Which we never ended up having. And then we were gonna watch the dawn treader! It was so good. Netflix is great haha I’m loving the dvd thing. Too bad the streaming will go away soon. Ah well what can you do. So yeah it was a pretty amazing day.

Another thing that I’m excited about, is coupons. We are gonna have to get some food to bring to seafair. Mostly because 4 bucks for a corndog isn't gonna fly. Especially since one corndog doesn't fill anyone up. So we are gonna buy stuff like a salad kid from fresh express. The chicken taco one is amazing. Totally my favorite. So we're gonna do that, make some sandwiches for breakfast and later just in case. And then we're gonna get some roasted garlic hummus. The best part of all of that is I found coupons for almost every single thing we're gonna buy for seafair. It really made me excited. Haha I probably shouldn't get THAT excited but I’m cheap so it does excite me. That’s pretty much it for now. I got behind on blogs AGAIN ugh. I suck but yeah I’ll get to it. Until next time people!

Book Review - Mirror Ball by Matt Redman

2011-07-28T15:36:00.000-07:00

Book Description:

Internationally known worship leader and songwriter Matt Redman invites readers to a deeper understanding of what it means to reflect God’s dazzling radiance.

In Mirror Ball, Redman eloquently illustrates why passion is more than a song or a feeling. It’s a story of guts and glory, pain, and purpose. For anyone ready to follow Jesus, passion is a way of life.

Through story, Scripture, and practical inspiration, Redman encourages readers to remember that, however inadequate they may feel to live out this passion, God will work in and through them, just as light radiates through the smallest prism. After all, the same God who said “let there be light” has made His light to shine in their hearts, illuminating their lives and the lives of those around them.

Mirror Ball by Matt Redman I did have high hopes for it. But I just couldn't get into it. It was all over the place and I couldn't focus real well on the book in general. Though I think the cover its such a great one. The book just didn't do a whole lot for me. It was a little difficult to get through it and then there was a sizeable discussion guide. I couldn't exactly discuss it since it was geared towards small groups. It was really disappointing that I couldn't get very far in this book. I anticipated it. Well you can't like every book I guess.

thanks to B&B for the copy of mirror ball for review!

There are good times and there are bad times.

2011-07-27T17:55:00.001-07:00

And there are times that are in the middle of good and bad. Right now I’m grateful for at least one person that I know reads the blog and comments. Someone I can relate with. And yeah I don't have a lot of friends but I’m okay with that honestly.

The last few days I’ve been researching vitamins. For those who don't know, I have a thyroid issue, vitamin d deficiency and I have iron deficient anemia. I likely had all those things for a long while, and that caused my hair to thin. And I’m trying to get back to not having a balding head cause it freaks me out. But I’ve found out that I need to take more vitamins and hopefully I’ll get that hair back. Also I have dry skin which is a recent thing which I have found that means I need more of something. Hopefully it is one of the things I’m going to be taking. Also I have needed to lose weight. So I’m trying to get on the right track with all of these things. Hopefully I can keep going with it.

There are times when things with the boy and I are bad. But we've had a great few days. While he is at work we usually send messages through gtalk and today and we had this lovely conversation:

The Boy: :)

oh, baby...

i fall more in love with you everyday of my life...

me: awwww

The Boy: :)

i have googly eyes for you

lol

me: sometimes i don't like you.

you totally just made me cry

The Boy:awwwww

hahaha

mwah.

me: :)

The Boy: you're so amazing to me. and precious. :)

it did make me cry, I have such a sweet man. I am beyond blessed. He is here for me through everything and when we get a long its the best. Though even if we don't get along we can deal with it. But I feel very blessed with him.

Also today I’ve felt very blah and like a huge failure. Sometimes the way my mom says things about me not having a job, or money or insurance and today talking about retirement. It just makes me feel like such a huge failure and like I can't do anything right. I need to get on the ball but that’s kind of hard when people don't reply to me when I reply to their job listing. Makes it a little difficult. But I really only want to do the nanny thing. I don't really feel like I want to do anything else. And ultimately I want to be a housewife/mom so I don't really need a lot of training for that. But I just kinda wish that point in life would be here already.

I have so much to do but I feel like I get harped on every second so I never get anything done. I need to do reviews and read my books but it seems like that never happens. I just need something great to happen, I need a nanny job so I can read more while its nap time and all of that. And so I have money to save to get along with the next phase of life. But I need to be patient its hard though. All of this is really hard right now. I just feel so hopeless. But again I have an amazing man. This is what he said to me:

The Boy: Awwww. Poor baby...

Wish I could hold you right now :-(

For the record I don't think you're a failure. You're amazing. :-)

You're a natural at what you do it's just tough to find anything but you've been trying.

And you're very resourceful and responsible with your time. I may have a job but I suck with that still.

You do lots during the day.

me: k

The Boy: Mwah. I'm proud of you babe.

me: thanks

The Boy: Mmhmm and it's true and I mean every word :-)

The Boy: but just try and I'm proud of you no matter what so remember that :-)

me: k

love that guy. So for now I guess I’ll just try to calm down and listen to some owl city and gungor. Good times.

2011-07-24T16:07:00.001-07:00

Sorry about that last post guys. I am on my period hello emotionalness. But even though those things were mostly true. And I do get frustrated with those things continuously. I still love the boy very much and even if the times lately are rare when we get along and have just the right amount of loveyness. I am grateful for what I do get.

Yesterday we had a good time with each other, we went to a few parades, and out to dinner, It was really nice. Then we topped the night off with a little dose of lego Indiana Jones! Haha we are such dorks. But we love those lego games. Hoping to play it again later. We watched tangled on Friday that was a great movie.

I was thinking about friends in church today. And that has been a reoccurring theme in my head lately. Never been the most of popular people. And I don't seem to relate very well with a lot of people. It always seems like I always had just a few friends at a time, and only a couple close ones. And now I don't really know that number. I find it hard to be in groups of people and I’m never really in anyone’s circle because I’m not a super social person. So I guess that makes it hard. But I’m not completely miserable. I do have the boy and if I didn't have him, I would be lost. He is my absolute best friend. My other “best friends” seem to have forgotten about me anyways. I'm not sure how that happens but if you'd like to throw 13 years of friendship down the toilet? Well I guess I can’t stop you but I can't always be the only one to try. It gets exhausting trying and trying with no one wanting to try back. I put a lot into friendships sometimes only for them to just throw me out in the trash and it just gets so irksome and tiring. But I’ve learned not to do that as much which is good. But at the same time. The ones that you thought you'd never lose since you have been friends for so long. Well I guess they are gone and I’m not sure how to make them talk to me. Heck I got robbed with these people for cripes sake! You'd think that someone wouldn't just ignore you when you have that kind of bond. But it is what it is.

Other than that I’m not sure what to say. Got a few reviews coming up. But other than that I’m not sure. I have a lot of pictures to go through hopefully it won't take so long. I will post links later since I am not putting them up on facebook anymore. I guess that’s about all for now.

2011-07-22T15:25:00.000-07:00

its really depressing when you can look around and can't even count the amount of friends you have on one hand. which means there are zero. its depressing when you can't even talk to your best friend at the moment. or even feel like he is your best friend.

when you're all alone and there is no one you can count on, when you have no one to do anything with, well at least i still have my books. but that doesn't take away the pain. especially when you feel like the one you care most about can't bother to actually pay attention to you.

i'm really very blah and annoyed and angry and weepy today. i hate that i don't feel important enough to spend time with. i hate that the boy never gets his homework done and i'm the one stressing about it. i'm the one that doesn't get any time cause hes always on his stupid phone. i'm just really annoyed with everything and anything today.

yarggghhh

2011-07-20T12:32:00.000-07:00

The week before last was interesting. On saturday we went to see the pirates landing. We went early but next year we need to go earlier and save a spot. Cause we were down on the beach and then when it happened we were so squished. It was a little overwhelming considering last year I couldn't see anything at all.

Then we went out to the street fair after eating at the mexican restaurant. And after we came home I figured out I was burnt. My head got super burnt and my face got a little burnt. But I did put sunscreen on so I don't quite get that. Then I had a square shaped burn on my chest. I'm thinking that was from my camera.

Not much else is going on, I got a huge splinter up WAY far up my nail it was so horrible, I also cut myself with scissors while cutting the boys hair. And my hands got all cut up. It was not a great week for me accident wise.

Other than that i'm just waiting for my books to come in the mail which never gets old. I have a lot of exciting ones coming. Which will show up on my examiner.com columns' yay. Well now I have to go write and post some things. And work on pictures. While I wait for the boy. Though I am kinda blahish about things right now. His school starts up this week, and I dunno it feels like there won't be so much time. And even so we don't have a lot of time.

Oh and netflix bugs me with that price increase. That means that the streaming will go away and thats WAY annoying cause I liked that. But I guess we'll just have to go with the dvd thing. Okay really going away now.

Book Review - Secrets of the Heart by Jillian Kent

2011-07-14T17:44:00.003-07:00

“Madeline Whittington, daughter of the deceased Earl of Richfield, emerges from English society s prescribed period of mourning in the winter of 1817. Madeline believes that she no longer belongs in a world of gossip and gowns after experiencing multiple losses. When she rescues a runaway from Ashcroft Insane Asylum, her life will be forever changed as she discovers the dark secrets within the asylum walls. Because of his elder brother s unexpected death, Devlin Greyson becomes Earl of Ravensmoore and struggles between two worlds: one of affluence and privilege and one of poverty and disease. Torn between his desire to become a doctor and the numerous responsibilities of his title, he wrestles with God s calling for his future. Will he be able to honor this God-given gift and win the woman he falls in love with in a society that does not value gentlemen who work? And will Lady Madeline be able to honor her father s memory when she is attracted to the man she holds responsible for her father s death? “

I really tried to like this book but for whatever reason I just couldn't get into it at all. The cover for one thing is VERY distracting. It would be better if there was a real person modeling on the cover. I'm sure most people would get into this book but for me it just wasn't happening. I really only got 20 pages in before I had to stop. It was just too slow for me.

Whew I don't really know what to say.

2011-07-05T18:04:00.000-07:00

Things are somewhat okay.

Found out that my netbook which I thought was gone forever is under warranty. I almost couldn't believe it! So thats one good thing. It did this weird black screen with type thing and I don't know what it said but then we tried to fix it and then it didn't work. So it just didn't turn on and it made me really sad. But hopefully it will be fixed soon.

Last night the boy and I went in search of fireworks we found some and we just sat with each other. It felt good to just be with him, especially since we've been pretty rawrish with each other lately. I hate when it happens but the good times outweigh the bad for sure.

Fun things are coming up around seattle so i'm excited about it. And i'm REALLY excited about the books that will be coming soon to me. So keep an eye out for those on my examiner column!

I need to get back on the losing weight train, my period kinda wiped me out but i'm done with that.

Still super far behind in reading but hopefully i'll pick it up soon.

Other than that nothing much is going on. I need to work on my pictures, get them all up on flickr but for now I will just go paint my toenails!

good ole wiffle balls..

2011-06-26T20:19:00.001-07:00

I feel pretty numb and depressed.

I feel like I can do nothing right

I get asked to do something and wait a few days to do it and when I finally do it, that’s wrong too. I got asked to fertilize the garden and water it. So I go and do it, let it known I am doing it and then after I’ve already done it, I get yelled at. I really feel like I need to get out of here and fast. Most of what happens is me getting yelled at. Yeah I get that my dad is having issues and is stressed but a lot of what he is stressed about isn't a factor and he is pretty much grumpy 24/7 and takes it out on all of us. He gives me these looks like I’m good for nothing, it could be the hormones but he can be downright horribly mean. And I just feel like I need to get out of here fast. I need to get money and figure out a plan and just get away.

Yesterday and today suck. Seems like I keep getting snapped at for everything. And I got hit in the face with a wiffle ball. And it hurt so bad it left an imprint for at least an hour. Good times.

I just feel like I’m good for nothing. I have been doing stuff around the house. I do a lot for everyone here but somehow its ALL wrong. I dunno I just really need to work to lose weight and get out of this house. I need to get out and get on with life with the boy.

Blah I’d say that things will be better tomorrow. But that is highly unlikely

2011-06-24T15:00:00.001-07:00

Since that last entry. I have gotten rid of my cough thank goodness that was driving me crazy. But this last week has been so crappy, crap happened and my net book is dead. I am hoping it can be revived. Yesterday I was so weepy that I was trying to eat some pizza and then I dropped it on the floor which made me laugh/cry then I almost peed my pants haha. I am a huge mess.

My newest obsession/craving is roasted garlic hummus, the kind that is made by sabra. Oh man I’m so obsessed with it. I couldn't find any and it was making me mad so I went out to another store about 15 mins away and found some! It was enough to make me happy. Cause Saturday the boy and I were fighting and I was gonna get ice cream at cold stone. And I did but it was WAY too sweet so it wasn't totally the best thing for my craving. I should have just gone to DQ which I will next time.

I dunno things lately have kinda been crappy. But not crappy at the same time. I do wish that the post office would get their crap together cause I’m so sick of having lost books. And having to have them sent out 2 or 3 times before I get them. Its such a horrible inconvenience. Not to mention the fact that I’m so horribly be hind in reviewing books. Oi I have such huge huge piles they are taking over my room! But what can ya do. I kinda got wrapped up in a granny square blanket project I started whipping up which I’m really excited about but reading kinda got put on the back burner. I need to have a balanced time for both hobbies haha I guess I will eventually.

I started working out with a kettle bell my legs hurted so bad the last few days. But it has to be done, I have to start losing this weight. Hopefully everything will work and start coming off eventually.

I think that’s all that’s happening with me now.

Until next time.

Book Review - Spring For Susannah by Catherine Richmond

2011-06-24T14:02:00.000-07:00

Spring For Susannah is a new historical fiction book out from Thomas Nelson publishers. This is the debut novel for Catherine Richmond. But for being a first novel it sure doesn't seem like it and it really doesn't disappoint at all!

Susannah is a mail-order bride who is very uncertain about what is to come in her new life. Her world is rocked when her parents pass away and there are no gentlemen interested in her. So she has agreed to marry her pastor's brother, Jesse. Suddenly Susannah has now left the only place she has ever called home to the great unknown of the Dakota territory.

Jesse surprises Susannah with how loving and patient he is. She does have a hard time believing that she deserves any of it and is constantly on her guard, no matter how accepting Jesse seems to be. But with God's help Jesse slowly breaks through Susannah's tough outer shell.

Now they are getting along nicely together. But Susannah becomes pregnant, only to miscarry a little while later. Her life feels like it's crumbling to the ground. Meanwhile the winter is extremely hard for her and only adds to her general despair. And when she finally sees the first potential of spring coming it gives her a great amount of hope for her new life.

Now, what do I think of this novel? I loved this book a whole lot. I cannot remember reading a first time novel that was on this level or this awesome. Catherine Richmond definitely has an incredible gift for writing.

From the very start Catherine draws you into the the story. You wouldn't even believe that this is a debut novel! The characters Susannah and Jesse were extremely easy to understand and relate with. I was really impressed by the fact that Catherine wasn't afraid to write about lovemaking. Most Christian fiction skirts right around that or avoids it in general (though the bible doesn't). But she wrote about it in such a tasteful and special way, much like what it would be like in a marriage. That was very refreshing and made for a more complete, satisfying story.

Now that isn't the only good thing about this book. The way the writing flows is fantastic though it could be considered confusing by some in the way that it switches back and forth between the past and present day. The way the story is laid out gives you a really great back story and helps you to really see who these characters are and what they are really like. Jesse is incredibly sweet and Susannah is super guarded, though in the end they get their bearings with each other and develop a beautiful relationship. I think that this book would make a really fantastic movie.

Go check out this novel at your book store!! You will not regret it one bit. I received this novel in exchange for my review, and that didn't affect my views at all.

To celebrate her debut novel, Catherine and her publisher, Thomas Nelson, have teamed up to give away a Spring For Susannah Prize Package worth over $150!

One grand prize winner will receive:

* A brand new Latest Generation KINDLE with Wi-Fi and Pearl Screen

* Spring for Susannah by Catherine Richmond (for KINDLE)

To enter just click one of the icons below and then tell your friends! But hurry, giveaway ends on June 27th. Winner will be announced on Tuesday, June 28th at 5 PM (6PM MST, 7PM CST, & 8PM EST) during Catherine's Spring for Susannah Book Club Party on Facebook! Catherine is rustling up some fun for the party - she'll be chatting about the story behind her novel, hosting a book club chat, testing your mail-order bride trivia skills, and giving away some GREAT prizes! Don't miss the fun and tell your friends!

Book Review - Chasing Sunsets by Eva Marie Everson

2011-06-16T00:00:00.000-07:00

Chasing Sunsets: A Cedar Key Novel (Return to Cedar Key)

Have you ever just sat in awe at the sunset? Or gone to the coast solely for a look at the breathtaking sights? Well, this new novel called Chasing Sunsets by Eva Marie Emerson might just strike your fancy.

Now this book isn't necessarily just about chasing sunsets. It follows the happenings in Kimberley Tucker's new normal. She is now divorced, a single mom sharing custody with her husband. But the new summer arrangement has her beyond frustrated. Her family owns a home in Cedar Key and her father sends Kimberly there while the kids are with him for 5 weeks. Kimberly doesn't plan on staying there that entire length of time. But that may change with the reacquainting of an old love. She was just trying to find herself there in Cedar Key but now she just might have found a whole lot more.

This was such an entertaining read. I loved the lightness of it with such a beachy feel. The characters in the novel mesh really well together. And since this is the first novel I have read of Eva's I was pleasantly surprised. It was a really great book. Almost makes you wish you were watching a movie about it. And then there is the ever infuriating waiting game for the next novel. I'm sure it will be worth the wait, as this one has proven to be well worth the read. An amazing novel, and they packaged it very nicely with a great cover as well.

Available June 2011 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Book Review - The Fine Art of Insecurity by Angela Hunt

2011-06-14T17:30:00.000-07:00

The Fine Art of Insecurity is the newest novel out by Angela Hunt. It is published by Howard books.

This is a story of three southern sisters. One of the major threads of this story is that among all three sisters there have been a total of nine marriages. And when their grandmother's house finally sells after being on the market for awhile, they need to finally go clear it out, something which they had never gotten around to ever since she had passed. So they pick the following weekend since it's a holiday. It seems perfect – but nothing was going perfectly for any of these sisters. Each of them have their own issues, whether marital or just plain depression. The narrative dives deep and stays there. Their efforts at claiming things for money and not the memory of their grandmother all gets washed away in the midst of their profound bond. But you'll see what happens when you read it for yourself.

This book was an incredibly fast read, but gripping. Hunt has a way of telling a story in such a way that you are on a cliffhanger at every moment. She really has a talent at spinning stories – which makes it all the more disappointing when the book ends and leaves you longing for more. I enjoyed this very deeply. It was heartbreaking in good and bad ways. She definitely uses the best approach to telling a story in such a living, breathing way. With that said please check this book out – you will be happy you did!

Thank you to Howard and Glassroad for the copy of this novel for review.

Book Reviews - The Fitting Room by Kelly Minter and Revise us Again by Frank voila!

2011-06-12T23:26:00.000-07:00

The Fitting Room by Kelly Minter is about putting on the character of Christ.

Do you ever go to a fitting room and try something on only for it to not fit? Well that’s what many people think of when it comes to Christ. They think that they don't fit into it. That they can't be chosen, cannot forgive or have peace, kindness, humility, compassion, patience or joy.

But the truth is that you can! Minter shares some tips and stories on the subject. It may be difficult but at the same time it's very simple. No relationship is ultimately easy. So, of course it isn't going to be any easier in your relationship with Christ. Yes we stumble, but as you read Minter's words you'll start to see some things in a much different light. She insightfully shares situations from her own life in a well-balanced mix of humor and seriousness.

I really enjoyed this book and though I couldn't relate to all the stories in Minter's life, the message she sends made a lot of sense in the context of her experiences. This is one of those books that you'll want to keep on the shelf and read multiple times throughout your life. Oftentimes when browsing books I let the cover catch my eye, and this one did. And it sure did live up to expectations – very intriguing and just a great read.

This is also the newest selection for the Bloom Book Club which is being hosted on the website incourage.me now!

Revise Us by Frank Viola is a book about rethinking Christianity from the bottom up. The title makes you think of the popular phrase “revive us” but with a spin: it's a prayer to change us and the way that we approach God, the world and our faith.

This is not only a book. It's a journey, and an invitation to have your mind turned upside-down and inside-out as you explore (and get some great refreshers on) what the heart of faith in God is really all about. This is not your normal, run-of-the-mill call to revolution or moral stand.Viola's book helps you see through new eyes.

Whether it's the call to unity, or God's view of the body of Christ, or some amusing points about how ridiculous we as Christians can sometimes be, there's tons of insight to be found and a practical starting point for how to approach things differently. I especially liked some of the parts about how extreme the Charismatic side of things can become and how people who claim to be speaking for God can actually just be speaking for themselves.

There's something here for everyone, whether you sometimes wonder where God is in the middle of your pain and separation, or how to get a better understanding of how God talks through his people, or a punch in the gut about how easy it is to be a hypocrite. At the end Viola reminds us of just how big our God is and how Christ isn't found in just one church but through all believers. And that when we're born again it's our true nature to be like Him since we have Him inside of us.

I recommend this for every Christian who is struggling with their faith or needs some devotional or instructional material, or basically everyone. You're bound to find something to add to your faith within the covers of this book.

Find it at your local bookstore.

oh the good old smokers cough.

2011-06-10T17:00:00.001-07:00

Well in the last couple of weeks I have helped a friend move. And have been sick for over a week. Have this horrible hacking cough. The worst day was on Sunday when I hurt everywhere and coughing was a horrible pain everywhere in my body. It is for sure not fun. It has pretty much wiped me out.

Tuesday was super exhausting. Well the boy and I have been kinda on edge with each other, its mostly because we don't have a lot of time with each other and this season of life just plain sucks. Anyway back to Tuesday. I normally watch kids for the womens bible study. And I usually watch 6-9 kids. Most of them are 2-3 a few older ones. Like 4-5 but yeah anyway so that couple of hours totally wiped me out. Then later the boy and I were gonna go watch 4 kids from church. Wow that was even more exhausting haha. Putting them to bed was a challenge. It was good I had the boy there but it was bad cause he has never watched kids in that setting before. So we were kinda chaotic. Plus the fact that the family is fixing up their house to sell and all the kids were in the same bedroom. So that made it so they screamed at each other. Then one of the kids asked me for a clock so they could tell when it was morning time. Haha I was like uhhh wow. So they pretty much tried everything to not sleep. I wanted them to sleep because I wanted to eat. And I knew when we ate something that the kids would want it too. And I was not dealing with that! Eventually they fell asleep and the parents came home, then we ended up talking with them for awhile.

Other than that um the boy and I had a good talk the other day. We are better mostly. But still its just hard not having much time. We'll get through it. I need to read a whole lot of books. I'm super behind in reviews. But at the same time i'm so grateful that people do send me books for free. Its so cool. I am still in awe about it sometimes. Then I look at my huge pile of books and I kinda freak out haha. Well what can you do.

I think this is super awkward. A lot of my “friends” are mothers with multiple kids. It makes it super awkward its like its hard for me to get in the circle cause all the others moms are always first since they have kids and playdates and all. Its just really weird. But then again I just try to spend a lot of the time with the boy anyways. But still its just such a weird situation. Well i'm off to read and get something eat. Hopefully not cough my head off. That would be nice for once.

shoot my eye out?

2011-05-31T17:02:00.000-07:00

Aye yi yi.

Yesterday wasn't a good day at all. The boy came over and we were doing yard work. Well he was weed whacking and I wasn't super close to him but something I think a rock or something flew up and hit me in the eye it hurt so bad that I screamed/cussed. And tears instantly flowed it wasn't very cool. And the boy was REALLY freaked out and felt so bad. But before that I had gotten hit in the head with a stick also from the weed whacker.

Then I was using this weed puller thing. Well when you have it locked on the weed you push down the black top and well I had to do that really hard to get it out. And then SMACK right on my knuckle. Not once but twice on the same knuckle. It is now bruised.

Then the boy had weed wacked by the garden but the pieces got all in the garden so then my dad had a cow, also about me planting things without putting weed fabric in. I just can't win. But hes in a general bad mood lately cause of things.

Then after we were all done, we didn't even plant all the garden. And my knee hurt so bad nothing helped it. All night it was screaming in pain. Not so fun.

And now I have so many things to do but I can't do any of them cause i'm so tired. I started my period ugh lame. So I might as well go try to do some other stuff on my list. We'll see how far I get.

ugh i'm behind on everything

2011-05-27T14:52:00.000-07:00

i have so many blog postings and comments i haven't made. in my reader it says 1000+ blogs entries i need to read/comment on. well obviously i won't comment on every single one. but still.

i need to write two reviews, i need to post reviews. all of which i haven't done. along with the laundry i need to put away. and the reading i need to do.

guess i'm a bit overwhelmed. and when i'm like that i tend to do nothing at all. haha. makes no sense whatsoever.

but i get to start planting the garden this weekend! that is super exciting.

but for now i need to eat and get to all of these things i haven't done yet. oi.

this new normal of life right now

2011-05-27T00:41:00.000-07:00

is really not my favorite.

i'm tired of not having any time with the boy. 2 hours in the last 3 days. its kinda killing me. especially when hes almost falling asleep or i could have more time but homework is there. ugh.

and honestly i'm really sick of the us postal service. this month alone they have lost 9 of my books. and i had to have them resent out. and that honestly makes me feel like crap i don't want to have to ask people to send out more copies. its senseless when it should have been there in the first place.

blah thats all i have to say right now.

Book Review - Undaunted Faith by Andrea Boeshaar

2011-05-24T09:18:00.001-07:00

Undaunted Faith is the fourth book in the Seasons of Redemption series by Andrea Boeshaar. This has been such a great series to read, not to mention a great introduction to an author.

Here we follow up with the McCabe brothers, Luke and Jake. And then there is Bethany Stafford, now a schoolteacher in the new town they've traveled to. She doesn't like it much but it was better than the option she had before. But there's trouble brewing in town, and they're trying to work with some others to figure out the source. And in the midst of this swirling madness Luke proposes to Bethany. It's so sudden and she's afraid that he just wants to save her reputation.

Another development in the town is that there's a female doctor, which makes quite a few people less than happy. She's wrapped up in her work and doesn't want to have anything to do with men right now. But she does find a friend in Jake McCabe, though she isn't entirely sure what to think about him.

The town is in disarray with a brothel and other men trying to take control. The threat is extremely high. What will happen? And will people get hurt? Or worse yet, wind up dead? You'll just have to read to find out!

These books are so amazing with such rich stories. And the covers advertise the books really well and are pretty beautiful. Some of the characters in this particular novel are real snakes, like the sheriff who just got under my skin. But overall it was a very pleasant read, and I just wish there were more to it! It's definitely something you should pick up, especially if you like historical romance. Please check this series out at your local bookstore or online.

Book Review - Leaving by Karen Kingsbury

2011-05-19T14:15:00.000-07:00

The much anticipated Bailey Flanigan series starts off with the novel called “Leaving,” which begins where “Take Four” left off. Bailey still hasn't had any contact with Cody Coleman, which is tearing her up. But she also has a friend in her former co-star Brandon. And when she is still a little down in the dumps she receives some amazing news: she's getting an audition for a Broadway show! She is beyond excited and nervous because she had been working hard since the last audition she had.

And then what happened to Cody? He left his hometown on a whim to be closer to his mom who is behind bars. And then he took a assistant coaching job in a small town outside of Indianapolis. There are feelings left ignored though. Will he ever call Bailey to explain? Will Bailey move? Will she see Cody? And what about the rest of the Flanigan family? The transitions these characters go through are pretty earth-shattering.

These books are so exciting. The worst part is waiting for the next one to come out. This was an extremely emotionally packed book. It was seriously the only one in any of the Baxter or Flanigan series' that has ever made this examiner cry. Bailey's character is so real that she almost feels like a good friend. Karen has such a way with words that it makes you feel like you are right there in the middle of the story. All of her books could totally film-worthy. It's hard to know what else to say without giving away all the great stuff in this book. It's just an amazing story. They get better each novel. Please check out all of Karen’s books, especially this newest novel.

As always please subscribe to my articles. And you can find this book at your local Seattle or surrounding book stores.

Thank you to Zondervan for providing this book for review.

Book Review - A Heart Divided by Kathleen Morgan

2011-05-15T10:00:00.000-07:00

A Heart Divided by Kathleen Morgan starts out in the late 1800's, with an old feud between the Caldwell and Wainwright families. The conflict started long before the children of these two patriarchs were ever born and never seems to end.

Unfortunately the kids got caught up in the thick of it. Sarah has some serious problems with getting involved at all but gets pressured into it. Her father and brothers have her distract what they thought was a ranch hand so they could go break in and rob the Wainwrights. But there was only one hitch. That ranch hand was actually a Wainwright boy. After that debacle she does her best to lay low, but running an errand in town gets her caught. The rest you won't believe. Does the feud live on? Or what will happen after Sarah gets captured by a Wainwright? Will something else bloom in the meantime? Only you will see when you read this novel!

Now I was pretty on the fence about this book. When I received it I was pretty positive I would only last a few chapters. Not knowing anything about Kathleen Morgan's novels or writing style in general didn't help. But I was really pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed the book. Her story keeps your interest and catches you off guard with so many twists and turns in this novel. One thing I didn't like though was the chapters were far too long for my tastes. And since this is a series there is the whole waiting game with the next book coming out. All in all it was a great read for sure. I definitely recommend it.

Available May 2011 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

oh the social awkwardness of it all!

2011-05-10T22:36:00.001-07:00

For some reason I was just thinking about friends and church. You know how everyone has their group? I was thinking, wow I don't have that group. Its so weird.

But at the same time its not that weird at all. Looking back throughout my life I haven't ever been in a group really. I maybe had a few friends at a time that I hung out with. When I was little I had like one at a time. Kinda depressing really but I probably wouldn't change it.

And now its like somehow we hung out with all these people and then it stopped so abruptly. I don't really know what happened but I’m not really depressed about it. I was talking to someone the other day, I didn’t' go to this thing I was invited to. And then that person said “we missed you” and I thought... well you probably didn't even notice I was there. Honestly when I go places I’m pretty much the quietest person there. I'm socially awkward. Its just a fact, I’m not sad about it its just how it is.

And I’m not that lonely. (well I am when the boy isn't around). I have the best friend I could ever ask for in my life. The man I will marry. So things aren't that bad.

Then I have my hobbies, reading, photography, crocheting. I've always been into reading. I loved to do it from the very start when I learned. I was reading chapter books in 2^nd grade which was supposedly advanced for that age. I am super grateful for books. And I am beyond happy I get to review them and get them for free! Especially since I don't have a lot of money to buy books.

I don't feel bad about who I am, I like to have my nose in a book, I’m not the most social person in the world. It was just odd to think about it for a minute. I am just a lover of books I guess, its always been in me. And I wouldn't have that any other way.

so exhausted

2011-04-30T15:26:00.001-07:00

I haven't had much energy to write in here lately. I am spent. I still am sick now I have that icky smokers cough. Ugh this isn't fun. Plus everything is just super crazy and stressful around here.

Hoping the boy gets a job soon. Cause money is running out and thats seriously freaking me out.

I need to read a lot more books soon. Right now I have to go cook soup. I am just really exhausted from being sick. But at least i'm reading great books. I just finished a heart divided by kathleen morgan and now i'm started on leaving by Karen Kingsbury. Reviews to come later on those! But remember my examiner page over there on the side. Check that out and subscribe to my reviews!

I dunno what else to say really. I mean to type up some long thing but I am just so exhausted I don't know whats what anymore. So pathetic. Maybe later when I can think clearly I will talk some more about things.

Book Review - A Cowboy's Touch by Denise Hunter

2011-04-22T13:00:00.000-07:00

Abigail is a workaholic always on the search for the next story. She works for her mother's magazine. But when she is starting to have some health concerns, her mom thinks it's time for her to have a break.

So Abigail is sent off to Moose Creek, Montana for the summer. She has a great aunt down there who her mom is very worried about. So basically she is sent there to check up on her aunt and get rest in the process. And while she is there, Abigail does start to calm down and meets a few people. It's more peaceful then her hectic Chicago life. And it's there that she starts to seek out God more.

But she didn't really think that while in Moose Creek a nanny job would suddenly fall into her lap. She began to watch a little girl whose father was a widower and at times was super grouchy. He has a whole other story that is somewhat baffling too which the reporter in Abigail seeks to find out.

But while she was living in the house and taking care of the girl, she found much more than just a job. The rancher (the girl's father) wasn't who she expected. And she definitely didn't expect to melt under his touch... but will they fall in love? Only time will tell the stories of the people in this book.

Not having read any books by this author, it was tough to know what to expect. But boy oh boy, was this a great novel. It only left me wanting more, wishing there was another chapter or two. Denise does a great job with her writing and makes you really feel like you're there in the story. And the descriptions of the characters painted such an amazing picture. It could easily be made into a movie.

That said, please do check out A Cowboy’s Touch published by Thomas Nelson. Search for it at your local bookstore!

Thank you to B&B for providing me with this book for review, it didn't affect my thoughts about the book.

Book Review - Meet Mrs. Smith by Anna Smith

2011-04-20T11:00:00.000-07:00

Does anyone ever wonder what the wife of a famous lead singer does? This book gives you a huge glimpse into what Anna Smith, the wife of Martin Smith, frontman for Delirious? does. And boy is she an amusing and amazing person. Basically this is a book that chronicles what has gone on in their lives from the time they were just starting to date to when they married and grew their family.

It is a really enjoyable read. Through the happiness and the heartache you truly learn what goes on with the wife of a band member - all the stress, the worry, and the cross country trips. It is really amazing what wives and the kids deal with when their husband/father is gone on tour.

They also open their home to tons of people at any given moment, which goes from being a hangout to a shelter for someone who was needing some support, all throughout their marriage, having 6 kids and then the general every day life things. And as if that weren't enough, they started a charity organization called CompassionArt along with other songwriters participating in the project. But with such a busy life, they still always had their eyes on each other and looked at what was best for their family.

Reading this was super enjoyable for me. This made a great transition back to non-fiction on a rainy Seattle day. Speaking of which, it was especially nice to read that while visiting the U.S. one of Anna Smith's favorite tour cities was Seattle. Does a native proud!

This book was hard to put down and reading it in two days made it really rewarding.

thanks to B&B for providing this book for me to review. that had no affect on my thoughts.

Book Review - Delirious by Martin Smith

2011-04-18T17:00:00.000-07:00

Christian band Delirious? rocked the world and changed lives for 17 years, producing 15 albums and 22 singles in the process, much of which was played here on Seattle radio stations. This is the story of what went on behind the scenes and Martin Smith's life from childhood to life with his own family.

Delirious by Martin Smith spills his heart right from the get-go in this book. He talks not only about living as a Christian even in the other cultures that he toured through, but living a life of compassion and how he worked out all of that (including the touring) with his family life. Through all the ups and the downs, they stuck together and they learned that their family was bigger than just flesh and blood relations.

Martin tells of their trials throughout the recording industry. He touches on struggles he faced while being out for months at a time. Missing time throughout his childrens' lives while being on tour was one downside. But at the same time I'm sure he wouldn't have traded those experiences, some of which changed his life. One of which was an encounter with a lovely little girl in India whose situation stirred his heart at a deep level. This led to starting a charity, CompassionART, with his wife. Through it they helped to stop human trafficking.

But all through their whole life as a band, they had their families, and the now combined family they have formed with all the band members.

This is a great book to go along with his wife's more light-hearted and funnier Meet Mrs. Smith. Martin's book is intense with a lot of depth to it. Not only is it an autobiography but also his story of the band and his experiences with it. A must read for any Delirious? fan or just anyone in general, especially Christians who enjoy being both challenged and inspired.

thank you to B&B for sending me a copy of this for review.

what a stupid week.

2011-04-17T11:30:00.001-07:00

Whew what a week. This week has been hectic and stupid all at the same time. There has been crap that has been going on. But yeah I’ll get to that in a second.

Since the last time I have gotten stuff from the postman! So that’s exciting. I am excited for what he will bring this week. That’s just such an exciting thing. Weird I know.

So I came down with a kinda bad cold the other day, so that REALLY sucked. I now have gotten through the night totally for once in the last few days. So that made me pretty happy. But I’m super exhausted anyways after getting up at the buttcrack of dawn for childrens ministry.

Friday my mom had a scare, she passed out while at the doctor after a blood draw and had to be transported to the hospital. And was there for a lot of testing since she was throwing up and had a hard time getting stable. It was so crazy. But shes just really tired so I think that’s what it was, just really tired and them taking too much blood at once. It was really stressful though. I had to go find out how to get her car. Luckily the boys roommate Alex is amazing and he took me down to get moms car. And he wouldn't let me pay him for gas either. Hes an amazing guy.

After that though I felt increasingly more horrible like my eyes were bulging and I felt like I had a fever. I just went to get stuff at the store like meds and drinks. But I haven't had much of an appetite the last few days. Kinda weird but food just isn't appealing at all.

Things with the boy aren't as good as they could be. I mean we are fine but just have normal things to work through I guess. More communication which is always good but this week has just been pretty rough.

Last week we went out to take pictures and that went good I got some really good ones. And then we went out to dinner at our friend janni and pauls house. We were there LATE. And before that after we took pictures we mowed the lawn it was so long. But we all did it as a surprise for my parents when they got home and boy were they surprised it was a huge success that’s for sure. But that whole thing was exhausting. And hard on the allergies.

Other than that I don't think anything else is going on. I do miss some people but I am excited about all my new followers on my blog and hope I’ll get to have some good blog friends now.

Easter is next week should be interesting. I am unsure of how that will go. Especially with my family being the way it is. My granny isn't really making any effort to spend time with us at all. We are gonna go see the tulip festival and she won't come cause she is taking care of too many dogs. Its always her excuse. She will always take care of dogs and not spend time with her family. Its really sad and infuriating. But its always the way it has been and probably always will be. What can you do right?

pictures to come later!

amazon

2011-04-16T16:23:00.000-07:00

if you are looking for some books, you should check out my amazon seller account! i have a lot of books up for sale!

http://www.amazon.com/shops/aimymichelle

please buy them!

The other night I was thinking about engagements...

2011-04-14T12:42:00.001-07:00

Why people get pictures and spend so much money on all of that stuff. Why would someone do that?

I dunno I guess the thought of engagement pictures is nice and all. But at the same point I don't see the point.

Just like I think it is almost better to just elope than have a huge hoopla. I'm not a fan of hoopla. To me I would think that just a plain dress you get at pennys would be fine instead of a super expensive wedding dress.

I don't think doing the whole church wedding is for me either, I would like doing it a park, a small wedding and then maybe a potluck BBQ after. I'm just so weird. I guess its cause I’m not mushy and I’m a super cheap person.

I'm probably not the most traditional person, but I guess that isn't what matters. What matters is how the boy and I want to do things eventually.

Last night we were watching parenthood on demand. And the girls on the show were all hyped about going to prom. I was home schooled I never had a prom. I did have opportunities to go to dances. But I didn't want all the hype. All the stupid frilly dresses I didn't have money for. It just didn't matter to me. My mom never was into it either. And the boy he wasn't into it either. It just all seems so pointless.

I guess its all like traditions. But I like to make my own traditions. Its not about just going with what everyone else has done. Its about doing things how you want, the way you see it. Its better I think that way. More individualized I feel is much better.

do you know about examiner.com?

2011-04-11T14:31:00.000-07:00

Do you know about examiner.com? I have been writing for them for a few months.

Basically its a news site, you can write about everything from crafts, to music, to news and religion. The best part is you get paid for it!

What you do is go to the link to sign up and then pick a topic and apply to be an examiner. Its really fun for me cause I have another outlet to get book reviews out there.

If you are interested sign up with this link and please subscribe to my column!

Book Review - The Nile by Kenny Blair

2011-04-09T12:10:00.000-07:00

The River Nile by Kenny Blair is a pretty short book at only 98 pages.

This book has everything from drama to suspense and surprise all in one. It follows Sister Maria, a doctor from Guatemala who has worked to care for people for charity. Having been an orphan she could totally relate to those in the same position and responded when called upon.

Then there was Julie, who was adopted when she was three years old. She is doing an article for her school about the orphanage where she was adopted from. While researching she finds some info that she thinks needs to be looked into further. The gist of the story is about the sacredness of life and explores pro-life views. There isn't a whole lot to say about it since it's so short. It was alright overall. It can be confusing since there isn't as much backstory as one could wish for. But it wasn't too terrible.

note to self

2011-04-05T14:53:00.000-07:00

do not, not take your pills. you will feel like crap! and super exhausted all over again.

nothing very exciting is going on, getting some good quality time with the boy in. i am reading amazing books. i'm SO excited about the upcoming reviews, but i do have new reviews on my examiner column. check it out on the side bar or right here

i am still going through the blog party list! so i'm finding and bookmarking blogs, will comment on them later. so hopefully i have new friends from this!

and then i would like some comments! its so distressing to have no one comment at all.

i am hoping that a new nanny gig will present itself and then things will be good. aslo praying for the boy to get a job soon. the unemployment ran out. so we're just hoping and praying he gets a job.

i am hoping that the post man brings me my books and also the ups man too! i've been waiting and waiting! soon the fed ex man will bring me some too! i have a huge list of ones i'm waiting for. it should be exciting.

on thursday or friday i'm heading out to take pictures with my dslr i hope i get some great ones cause then i will share. i am excited for spring and summer (if it isn't too hot) because i get to use my camera and take great pictures! i am still learning it cause by the time i got it, it was fall and then it was crazy gross outside so i couldn't go take pictures. hopefully i'll get the hang of it.

i suppose that is all i have to say for now! talk to you laters!

Book Review - My Lady by Joyce Wheeler

2011-04-02T12:06:00.000-07:00

In the wide open air we meet Jolene O'Neil. When she is first introduced she had been through the horrible season of life where her parents had passed in an accident. She has some awesome family but her grandmother kind of always rubs her the wrong way. She lives with a family and goes to school. Until she graduates high school.

In the next phase of her life she meets John Harris he is in the air force she is going to marry him and she does. Though not without some doubts from some people around her. One in particular Dexter DeLange. He is the uncle of the girl she lives or lived with. He had also had a sort of relationship with Jolenes mother at one point. Yes he is 30 years older than Jolene. Crazy right?

Now Dexter was a hard man to read. He lived in Denver and he owned and operated a hair salon among other things he did. He always wanted Jolene to model. He seemed to be obsessed with her.

This tale has so many twists and turns and you won't even guess what happens next. I sure didn't it was so baffling at times. It sure has many twists that one wouldn't expect. There were some minor typos that were found but other than that it was a great read.

Gear up for the Ultimate Blog Party 2011

2011-04-01T00:01:00.000-07:00

is everyone ready for the party? i am! it was such a fun thing last year. if you don't know what it is, this is a big list of tons of blogs and we all visit each other. some people find long lasting friends through this. you can win prizes and what not. but really its just fun to look at everyones blogs and participate in this party!

you can visit the site click the button above and there you go!

a little about me and my blog, i am amy and i live in seattle washington, i love to read and so a lot of my blog lately is book reviews. but i also have a column on examiner.com click my link on the side to look and subscribe! i put a lot of reviews on there too! some i only post on that site.

other than that i blog a lot about life and fun things i do with the boy. he also has a blog not very updated though. and we go out take pictures and just do fun stuff. we both share a love of books/reading. so thats always fun. but other than that i am just me and i am enjoying life! so thats a little about me, take a look around and stay awhile! subscribe to my blog and my examiner column! enjoy! and don't be a stranger!

Book Review - Snow Melts in Spring by Deborah Vogts

2011-03-29T12:04:00.000-07:00

What do horses and football have in common? Well not much but those are two of the many things in this novel by Deborah Vogts.

In the first book of the seasons of Tall grass series it follows Gil and Mattie. Gil is a professional football player. Mattie is a veterinarian in Gil’s hometown. One night something horrible happened. Gil’s horse had gotten hit by a car and needed some serious TLC he was very close to not making it at all. But there came Mattie, helped the horse.

Out of nowhere Gil comes back after a phone call from his father telling him about his horse. So much more was going on down there, not just with the horse. There were so many issues between all of these people that you will meet once you read this. Many secrets, lies but there is also love.

Its a pretty dramatic tale but that’s what makes it so good. Where will Mattie and Gil end up? Only you will find out once you read it. And it will be a great time for reals!

Whew! i'm still alive don't worry!

2011-03-27T15:48:00.000-07:00

The boy, me and Jason

I almost don't know what to say about anything at all right now. Yeah I went on the trip. I guess I’ll say what happened on the trip. Though its somewhat hard to wrap my mind around still.

The airplane turned out to be okay. I had to be x-rayed though in that one machine. I didn't feel like having people all up in my lady parts though so that was that. And I’m such a threatening looking individual you know! But I digress. I didn't get any sleep on either of the flights. Which sucks cause we were flying at 11:35 pm Tuesday and got there at 10 am on Wednesday! And we lost basically 4 hours since we weren't used to daylight savings time. It was a pretty sucky deal.

Jason and I

So we got there, his mom, brother and grandpa picked us up and we drove an hour to his grandparents place. Their house was kinda yucky. Sorta looked like it should have been torn down honestly. But i guess it was okay. I mean they weren't super horrible. The boys brother is amazing love that kid!

We stayed there for a bit and then went to the house where we were staying, kyles house he is the cousin of the boy. And he wasn't like I thought at all. But his wife was actually pretty nice and amazing which I didn't think either. And their kid who they nick named "the chunk" was SOOOO cute I loved him. Steph had another kid named Landon too. So we stayed there got all settled and showered and ready for dinner/picture time.

I got out of the picture! so I was happy. But I was also tired and hopped up on sugar and caffeine so it was really annoying. But nothing was too horrible. We had a lot of fun with the cousins and the boys brother.

the boy and i

We went out to a mall the next day and that was super boring and tiring. Then after that we went out to dinner with the boys parents...... yeah that didn't go so well. Basically religion is stupid and well I got told because I don't speak in tongues that we would be unequally yoked IF (his dad put a huge emphasis on the if) we get married. and I’m sure he doesn't think I’m great in the keeping track of money arena because I don't write things done. but i keep track of my money, heck i barely spend any money! but whatever. so that was a huge mess i think. It does make me laugh though. Cause they barely have money for things because they live beyond their means. I dunno still not too pleased about it all. cause its not totally true.


the cousins and i

Then we goofed off when we got back to the house and did a lot of pictures and stuff. It was fun I was really sad that Jason had to leave. We only saw him for two days. But it was memorable.
The next day we went out to lunch and then to the park and then I kinda got grilled again. it was kinda crazy. But what can you do I guess? That’s what happens when you are with religious people. You can't say “geez” or “gosh” and I’m pretty sure I said all that but I am almost positive they heard me say crap. And I just try to stop it but its just something that we say so often here its hard to stop.

all of us cousins (well i'm not one)

Its such a weird environment to be in. You come from the city and then go out into the boonies! For one its super quiet there and that makes it super difficult for me to sleep. But its just so weird and different. A lot of people know each other and that’s SO weird for me honestly. Other than that the rest of the days we hung out. Went on a walk for a bit. Um we went to dinner at aunt Rachels and just chilled I guess. That was on our last night there. We left on Sunday afternoon, went to church before that and boy that was weird. It was super small but everyone called out things to say like they were just shooting the breeze with each other. SO weird. But also like this one guy kept saying “praise the lord” every few words and it kinda bugged me. It was almost defeating the purpose of saying it at all.

It really made me realize how great I have it and have had it all my life. I didn't have any stipulations on what I could say like gosh or geez. And other things. I'm SO grateful for how I was brought up you have no idea. We all would just sit there and talk about religion cause all of them lived it and it would have ruined them if they let it.


the grandparents

I really liked his cousins and most of his family but when they were being religious not so much. I liked them really but I was SO beyond ready to go home, where there were fruits and veggies and not junk food. Which really does mess up your bowels by the way. So nasty. And just the noises and the prettiness of Seattle. Gosh I missed it so bad. And having some place super close to go, like the store or anything really.

I dunno next time if we go there we are renting a car and staying at a hotel. And picking our food and all sorts of other variables of a trip. Oi so crazy.

the aunts and uncle and us

The kids were funny though Landon would say some weird stuff. He tried to get me to give him a lollipop and I wouldn't and he was like but I love you. And I was just like thanks but you don’t' get it. He was such a whiner though. And then the boys dad. Well this is a whole nother issue. Haha I gave him a side hug cause I twas weird for me to hug him at all. And he was like “see this girl knows how to hug. A lot of women will just put their breasts on you and I don't like that.” I was just like uhhhh that just happened? It was SO weird.

There was some drama about the boy and I staying at the same house. But we bypassed that by just doing it anyway and putting all our stuff in the same suitcase. It just is what it is. Its not a bad thing. My mom was like “who are these people” trying to tell us that it was weird but it all worked out in the end.

All the sisters, the boys mom in pink shirt

Most of the trip was good but I was happy to be home. And im still kinda all whacked out from it.
The boys parents are so crazy sometimes. They are now asking if I fulfilled his need of loneliness so is that a mistake for thinking that we are meant to be together. Why would you say that?! Its so annoying. They need to know things before they can support it! But I dunno its not their decision its not matter of that. I dunno its a battle we have to face and I don't like it. But It is what it is I suppose. We shall see how it plays out haha.

The chunk!

I am kinda glad I went though I met them and most of them loved me. Oh here is another funny tidbit.

So kyle throws chunk up in the air and catches him. Well his grandparents freaked out about it. And his grandma started praying like crazily. And on Sunday the boys grandpa (his brother calls him g-pap) came over and asked what the boy thought about kyle throwing the baby. And he was like “kyle isn't superman you know” and asked if the boy would do that and he kinda laughed and his grandpa was like this isn't funny! And then his grandma came over and was all “you gotta pray for that baby!” and it was just so amusing to me. You'd have to hear the voice to understand how she said it. But its not a big deal. Oh and cause kyle throws chunk on the couch. What toddler doesn't love that? He giggles so crazily when it happens. so stinkin cute! how could you resist that adorable face!

Book Review - The Pirate Queen by Patricia Hickman

2011-03-27T13:27:00.001-07:00

The Pirate Queen by Patricia Hickman is a novel about the treasures of life.

Saphora Worren is an upscale southern womane. She lives in an amazing home, has three adult children and a husband that is a plastic surgeon. The only problem is life isn't what it seemed for her. It seemed to everyone that she has the most amazing life. But, under the surface of that is a feeling of emptiness. She needed to flee away from all of this. She packed her bags and was going to go away, only that was haulted by her husband, Benders unexpected arrival at home.

He came home for a reason, to tell her some very bone chilling news. He was dying.. that would change their lives forever, especially in the moment of right now.

Of course like every wife does, she will take care of her husband, no matter what else has happened before. They leave to their vacation home near the beach. She was going to go there in the first place when she was deciding to get away. Though this is a whole different story now. The whole family is brought to gether at this house, they all take care of each other, and meet a little boy named Tobias the impression he left on them would change all of their lives eventually for the better.

Saphora learns a lot about herself during this journey, of life and of death and she won't be the same ever again.

While reading this I wasn't sure about it at all. I went from liking it to not wanting to read it at all. Yet I couldn't tear myself away from it. Its just one of those novels that you just go back to over and over beause you NEED to find out what happens. All in all I think that it is a good book. Though i'm not sure I would have picked it up again, or chosen it at the drop of a hat. I guess i'm more indifferent about it, though I was just super curious about what was going to happen next.

Book Review - The Perfect Blend by Trish Perry

2011-03-26T12:02:00.000-07:00

Who wouldn't love a story about tea? It sounds weird but this is totally a book to curl up with while drinking tea on a cold day. It is titled the perfect blend and is written by Trish Perry under harvest house publishers. Gotta love a publishing company located in the pacific northwest for sure! Moving along being unfamiliar with an author sometimes is a huge hit or miss. This one, however wasn't in that ballpark at all. It was such a pleasurable read. Let me give you a bit of background with this story.

We start off with Steph, she had come to Middleburg to elope with an attorney there named Rick. But what she didn't really plan for was the fact that he left without a word and stood her up at the alter. She was devastated, without knowing what to do. Here comes in Milly she owns a tea shop across the street from the attorney office. Milly invites steph into her tea shop. But very quickly she is invited into Millys life and her business. Steph starts working there the next day and in the process it will change herself and her whole perspective on things. So while at the shop Steph meets some local people who also quickly become some of her best friends. Two sisters Christy and Liz. They invite Steph to live with them and she accepted soon everything else falls into place. Then there is Kendall, he owns the hotel/restaurant they become super fast friends, he also tries to help her find a job. They have a bit of drama but I can't tell you what that’s all about. Then that would give away the whole story! And that would be unfair. But its really a great book. Luckily its a series and the next one comes out soon! So please check out the perfect blend by trish perry. You can pick it up at a local book store or library!

Book Review - Forgotten by Melody Carlson

2011-03-21T11:52:00.000-07:00

Have you ever felt like you were forgotten? Or have you been homeless? Then you might want to read this novel by Melody Carlson.

Forgotten focuses on 17-year-old Adele. She has been through a lot in her life. She's had to mother her own single mom. Her mother has had a drug addiction and Adele thought that her mom had turned a corner on the problem. She was clean and moved the two of them closer to her new fantastic job. Things went great for a few weeks, until her mother started acting weird and one day simply disappeared with her new boyfriend.

Adele has to learn to function on her own. In the midst of all of this she has friends who are pretty well off, but she finds it hard to keep up the act much longer. Slowly things just begin to unravel to the point that Adele finds herself out on the streets. Will she find a way to survive in this cruel world? Does the girl have a fighting chance?

You're going to find yourself rooting for Adele in this incredible page-turner. It's easy to sympathize with her plight.

This is mostly aimed for teenagers, so do recommend it to any teenagers you know. It may help them see a new angle on things that they wouldn't have seen otherwise. Also, this is the first in a series so stay tuned to see what else Melody has in store!

this was provided to me by navpress in exchange for a review. that in no way affected my thoughts.

Book Review - Passport Through Darkness by Kimberly L. Smith

2011-03-15T11:48:00.000-07:00

Passport To Darkness by Kimbery L. Smith is about her and her husband's incredible journeys and the lessons that she learned from them.

She thought that living the “good” life would give her everything she longed for. But boy was she wrong about that! She was called to something different. Something that would change her forever and put a lot of things into perspective. Like how good she has it in America and how it's okay to be imperfect. And the importance of communication, even if it is a lot of times you are going through the most painful things imaginable.

While reading this book you will probably experience a rush of emotions such as shock and sadness. Kimberly and her husband Milton at a certain point in their lives were called by God to do something more. And that journey took them through much more difficulty than they could ever have imagined. They moved most of their family out of the country to different foreign places, starting with Spain. There they encountered one of the worst things they'd ever experienced: a child was being abused by the director of the orphanage. They began working hard to prevent things like that from happening. While that man escaped out of the country, this is the event that set off their continual fight for the sake of the orphans. They learned all they could about human trafficking. They wanted to make a difference, but they didn't know how much it would change both of them. Milton couldn't continue to travel places and had to go back to the U.S. because of his diabetes.

Through all of that there was yet more to be done. Kimberly answered the call with much hesitation. She traveled to Sudan where she witnessed so many horrible things were happening and had some earth-shattering experiences.. Most of it was so horrifying that you couldn't believe it had actually happened. In the midst of all of this, Kimberly slides into heartache and depression and feelings of her own unworthiness, only for others to help her out of the pit so that she could continue the good work.

That's only the beginning of what you'll find in this book. But personally I have never read anything about human trafficking. Most of what I read in this book made my mouth drop open. It's so heart wrenching and almost leaves a person speechless and just wanting to cry thinking of all the orphans and the pain they constantly go through. As well as the women and even preteens that are raped repeatedly. It's just so baffling to hear about.

Reading this book will really open your eyes to what actually goes on in other countries. This is a book about real issues and real events. God is definitely evident in some of the stories in it. Please read this, it will for sure open your eyes onto what is happening out. It's a great book, not a happy one clearly, but it is very well written and contains so much to learn from. This book is definitely recommended for everyone to read.

what a week

2011-03-15T11:45:00.000-07:00

oh boy so last week nothing ever went right. it was not a happy week. i just can't even say everything that happened. but the worst thing happened on thursday. i went to pick up the boy, it was dark and i didn't know where i was going. i went to go into this parking lot. and i ran into a cement little wall thing i couldn't see. then my car was making a noise.... i was upset, we were trying to get to community group for the first time in months.

in the end it will cost 600 dollars to fix it. i bent the whole front frame of my car. my poor dear talula. and broke the radiator. so thats fun. but maybe my headlights will get adjusted when its there.

leaving tonight to go to PA. kinda terrified. i just don't want to go period. apparently i have to be in the family picture. oi. i dunno i'm not totally happy about going at all but i guess it is what it is. i still need to do more packing. criminy. getting ready for the airport is exhausting. anyways. thats about it. i'll update later!

Beside Still Waters: Author Interview

2011-03-11T11:12:00.000-08:00

check out this interview of tricia goyer! she wrote beside still waters. great book also check that out in april!

Book Review - Words by Ginny Yttrup

2011-03-07T12:03:00.000-08:00

Have you ever been at a loss for words? Or felt like you just couldn't say something? It would be horrible not to be able to express how you feel. But that is what ten year old Kaylee Wren deals with. She hasn't been able to talk because of events that have traumatized her beyond belief. Her mother left her in search of drugs most likely. But what was worse was the man she left her daughter with. This man that was put in control of Kaylee was not someone you should entrust your children with and abusive in more ways than one.

He scares Kaylee, but she just reads words from the dictionary her mother left behind (while he isn't looking) and keeps them all in her head. And when he is gone, she goes off into the woods to her secret place, a lovely redwood tree that she calls her own

Then there is Sierra, an artist in her thirties. She seems okay but deep down she's not. She lives with shame from when she was young such as the drugs which led to the destruction of her life. She also lost a daughter at birth because of them. Now on the anniversary of her daughter Annie's death she loses control of her emotions. But God begins to take control of Sierra's path as she learns to trust.

Now here is where it gets interesting! Kaylee is at her safe place in the forest. Sierra shows up, clearly upset about everything. Little did either of them know what a bond they would come to have and what else would transpire through it. It's honestly an amazing novel. One that you just can't put down.

This is a great debut for Ginny Yttrup. Her style of writing is super appealing. It's not an artificially sweet story, it's REAL. It conveys every little emotion in the words and happenings as it switches back and forth between Kaylee and Sierra's stories. I really loved this novel. It was amazing to read and experience their lives. I hope you'll take a chance to read it.

Thank you to B&H publishing for sending me a copy for review!

Check out Code of Justice!

2011-03-01T15:45:00.000-08:00

Hey all! i just wanted to let you know of this new book out by Liz Johnson. She writes amazing books. i hope you'll check it out. i will have a review up sometime in the near future!

"Follow the drugs."

Her sister's last words shake FBI agent Heather Sloan to the core. They also convince her that the helicopter crash only Heather survived wasn't an accident. Sheriff's deputy Jeremy Latham is assigned the case—he's the only one who can help Heather find the person responsible. If she can convince him they should work together. As they dig for the truth, they learn to trust and care for each other. Will they lose it all when the killer targets Heather? She's willing to risk her life to find her sister's killer—but her code of justice could cost her the chance to win Jeremy's love.

About the Author:

Liz Johnson grew up reading Christian fiction, and always dreamed of being part of the publishing industry. After graduating from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff with a degree in public relations, she set out to fulfill her dream. In 2006 she got her wish when she accepted a publicity position at a major trade book publisher. While working in the industry, she decided to pursue her other dream—becoming an author. Along the way to having her novels published, she completed the Christian Writers Guild apprentice course and wrote articles for several magazines.
Liz makes her home in Nashville, TN, where she enjoys theater, exploring the local music scene, and making frequent trips to Arizona to dote on her two nephews and three nieces. She loves stories of true love with happy endings. Keep up with Liz's adventures in writing at www.lizjohnsonbooks.com.

new look!

2011-03-01T12:55:00.000-08:00

well i changed up my blog look. it seems more cheery now i like it. i didn't make it though. found the template on a site. pretty good stuff.

speaking of change, I've dubbed this as the year of change. lately that change has been blogging a lot more recently. its kinda crazy but i do miss it. so there i press forward with my blogging habits.

change is hard though, i am usually not fond of it. it takes me a long time to process things a lot of times. and even just the will to change in some part of your life is hard. its a rough road. and I'm definitely experiencing that on all sides.

with my relationship with the boy. trusting things will change and be okay is hard. i guess sometimes i tend to be super pessimistic. so getting out of that way of thinking is really hard for me.

also there is change in the children's ministry where i volunteer. also very hard. we are now doing a lesson with 2 year olds. that's hard in itself. but some kids are more difficult than others. its just really stressful.

i guess sometimes just embracing change is stressful in general. that's all i got for now.

Book Review- Beside Still Waters by Tricia Goyer

2011-02-28T12:56:00.001-08:00

When you think of Amish fiction you think of the same thing: they all live in PA and never really go anywhere, right? That’s what I thought, because those are the same kinds of Amish stories I’ve read before. But Beside Still Waters by Tricia Goyer is so far from that.

One thing that is totally different from other Amish novels is the fact that the characters live in Indiana. Never heard of that before. It was a seriously nice change of pace.

So novel follows Marianna Sommer who has an interesting story right off the bat. There was a crisis in the family before she was born. Her parents, two sisters and a brother were in an accident the night that Marianna was born. Her sisters didn't survive, and their names were both combined to make up her name. Fast forward 18 years later. Her brother had left the Amish and had a job living the Englisch way... which wasn't exactly the preferred path as far as his family were concerned.

Marianna was not choosing the same path as her brother had. She knew it brought much grief for her mother. But it wasn't the right path for her. She was supposed to continue with the Amish way of life. She even had a potential husband. But in all of the craziness of life at that moment. Her parents had decided to move them out to Montana for a time. Marianna wasn't happy about this at all, she was promised that she could go back to Indiana in a while. So she helped til then, mostly because her mother was pregnant.

While there she met Ben. She didn't want to like him or even talk to him because he was an Englisch person but the ways of the Amish were different in Montana. And she couldn't help but talk to him sometimes. But during these times while talking with Ben he shows her a little bit how to have a deeper relationship with God. While in Montana she rarely thinks about Indiana, though sometimes she does. And in the end where does she stay? Will she leave? You must find out for yourself! Beside Still Waters will hit bookstores in April! Check it out!

a snowy day!

2011-02-26T22:19:00.000-08:00

so all this week they had been talking about snow.

and i really didn't believe it.

i still did go and get the groceries and do errands before it hit though.

cause i was more scared of the ice than anything. it gets so bad here sometimes.

anyhow i didn't really expect much of any snow at all. but this is what we got.

Book Reivew- A Billion Reasons Why by Kristin Billerbeck

2011-02-21T14:03:00.000-08:00

Today I’d like to introduce to you A Billion Reasons Why by Kristin Billerbeck. At first glace it looked like a great read, which turned out to be true.

Katie is in a tough place. She thought she was living the perfect life with a job as a teacher of special needs children and has an apartment with her roommate Eileen She's also engaged, but their relationship is super complicated. He is a very practical and she can always count on him for one thing or another. But does that mean that love is in the mix?

Her ex Luc DeForges came to see her and somehow always manages to sweep her off her feet no matter how mad it makes her. He wants her to come back home to New Orleans where she hasn't been in 8 years since a great deal of drama had unfolded. But Luc wants her to come sing at his brother Ryan's wedding. Though Luc infuriated her so much, sometimes he was amazing all the same.

While there in New Orleans she definitely learns a lot. But what if the answer to all the questions isn't Dexter? What if it's Luc? And how will everything play out? You'll have to read it to find out.

For the first novel of Kristin’s that I have read, this was such an amazing story. At times you can become so infuriated with people that you just want to scream! But then other times it makes you just as happy. This book was a great mix of everything all in one. This is a definite recommend. A great and quick read leaving you begging for more.

Please check it out at your local book store!

thank you to B&B Media Group for this review copy. i was provided a free copy in exchange for a review. this didn't change my view in any way.

Communication is the key for serious.

2011-02-21T13:59:00.001-08:00

Lately the boy and I have been talking and making and effort to get less uppity with each other and we haven't fought for a few days! Thats huge for us cause lately it seemed like constant fights. So i'm pretty stoked about that. Its so exhuasting. But at the same time its good it made us learn through it. And we haven't been totally open and honest either but we are now. So thats like a huge weight that was lifted for sure.

Lets see what else is going on. Well my immediate family all has birthdays in february. And on saturday we went bowling and then out to this seafood place. And my oh my it was delightful! That food was great. I shared with the boy. I also tried fish. See I used to eat fish all the time when I was a kid. Then something snapped in me and I didn't like it. I think I ate it too much. But I tend to be a super picky eater anyways. So I tried a crab cake, which wasn't that bad. I tried lobster I didn't like it. And I tried three different fishes and they weren't bad at all. But i'm not sure I would want to eat that stuff all the time. Next step is to try a tuna sandwhich again.which I have been wanting to do. It does have some iron in it. Which I need to have. I dunno it was weird.

Then yesterday the boy and I went shopping. I found a kohls giftcard for 20 bucks in one of his drawers. And we didn't know he had it. So hello free monies! And so we went to find some stuff to get him with it. After what seemed like 5 hours we found two shirts and pants. And super good deals too! We were stoked. Then we were so tired and hungry, we were gonna go get a free steak with my birthday coupon but I didn't want to drive there and I was tired and nothing sounded good. So we went to zoopa instead. I'm not sure It was the best idea but it was what we did. And I wanted to go to pennies to look for a coat. But when we got there they were closing the doors. It was super sad. But I don't feel like driving back down there today. I'm just trying to get other stuff done. Like book review stuff.

I also need to work out and try to get my face all cleared up before we go to PA in march. I need to lose some weight and my face is all broken out and scarred. Also has some dry patches on it. I need to find some lotion or something to put on my face. And need to take my vitamins again. Maybe my fish oil pills I stopped taking has something to do with it? Who knows. Anyways I guess thats all for now. Until next time!

2011-02-16T15:47:00.000-08:00

i just don't know how much more of this i can take. i'm so tired of being let down all the time. i just want someone i can totally depend on but i guess that is sometimes too much to ask. i'm tired of everything and i just want for once to not cry every day. thats exhausting in itself.

but i'm sick of the stress. and i am just plain sick with this stupid tired/achy/sinus headache thing, along with my period sooo i'm just tired in general i guess.

how do you feel better when the one you love the most is the one that is making you feel like this? i don't know either. i just wish i could fully depend on someone at all. but thats fine i guess i mean i can't really change it clearly. guess i just have to suffer. good times.

i'm old now..

2011-02-14T17:09:00.001-08:00

I'm a little less spazzed out as the last time I wrote. Haha I’m just kinda insane these days though. But it is what it is.

Since then I’ve had a birthday, went to a party and got fifty million more books in the mail. Oi I feel like I might be swimming in books soon. But today I got the bamboo crochet hooks I ordered! I'm so excited. They are so light. I ordered them as my birthday present to myself since its easier to go through security at the airport with.

That whole thing I’m still kinda nervous about but I’ll make it. I always do.

So this past weekend the boy and I went to a birthday party. It was hilarious. Sometimes people that keep drinking and drinking are hilarious. But the best time I had was snuggling a 2 month old baby name jubilee joy. She is amazing and so delightfully cute. Oh man I love that baby.

Lately I’ve been feeling very yucky. Sinus stuff and so tired. Its a huge bummer. It makes moving around not very enjoyable. Today it took forever to get going or even be able to put complete thoughts together. It was pretty pathetic.

Other than that I guess nothing very exciting is going on. Until next time!

tooo much time on my hands

2011-01-28T13:40:00.000-08:00

i just have too much time to worry, and too much time doing nothing. i am so sad cause i lost that one nanny job. its totally like i'm in mourning or something. i really do miss those toddler cuddles. its really heartbreaking for me. but i'll move on. i'm just trying to find a new nanny gig. hoping i will get one soon. i gotta write some stuff though.

money is freaking me out too. i think everything is freaking me out. but i am just worried about my blood test bill. i don't know how much it will be and its totally rawrish. but anyway. my test results are finally good so i'm at a good place iron and thyroid wise which is crazy! i almost don't believe it.

things are going good in the book review area. i'm excited about some of the reviews i'll be doing soon. its amazing. i love how things like that work out. also check out my examiner page for reviews!.

anyway i need to get back on the craft train but i got burnt out over that during Christmas. oi. but anyways that's the deal right now. until next time!

Take Three by Karen Kingsbury

2011-01-24T10:00:00.000-08:00

Next up on the review train is Take Three by Karen Kingsbury!

She has to be my most favorite author ever. Especially since she was stumbled upon by picking up random books at the library. Seriously her books are so amazing. This is the 3^rd in a series that had originally started as the Baxter series. If you haven't read any of those. I would totally recommend starting from the beginning. They are seriously amazing. You won't regret it at all. Karen has this way of making you feel like you are right there in the mix of it all. Its great.

So Take three continues the stories of Bailey Flannigan and Cody Coleman. But is also equally centered on Dayne Matthews who is the long lost brother of the Baxter kids. There is a lot of info when you don't read from the beginning. But Karen writes in the details so you aren't totally lost when you start reading a different series. Moving right long. This series is about movie making. Dayne was an actor. As are some of the other characters in the book.

This one mainly follows the end of a movie that had been made by Chase and Keith. They have a mission to see their films show Jesus to everyone. Now that’s finally panning out. But Chase is at a weird point in his life at that time. And then God sure had some different plans when it came to Chase. You'll find out when you read the book though. I wont tell you exactly what plans they were. That'd ruin the book for you!

During that change. Dayne has joined Keith with the movie making. Being an actor that was something he felt called to help with since he knew the business. But during this time of transition, Keith and his wife Lisa were having a transition of their own. Things with their daughter Andi had gone downhill. Was she depressed? Or was something else super serious going on with her?

There is so much in this book you won't ever get bored. And you may shed a tear. It is so awesome. Karen Kingsbury has such a great writing style. I just love it. Definitely pick this one up you won't regret it. But read the ones before it too! Amazing novels for sure.

Thank you to Zondervan for providing me with this book. I received this in exchange for my review. I wasn't compensated in any way.

2011-01-23T15:23:00.000-08:00

sometimes i just don't know what to think. which is probably good cause i could have some really mean thoughts. i have so much going on, but at the same time its so little. i guess compared to other people i have it pretty good. but that doesn't mean its totally good for me.

i'm tired of some people who are so dramatic like they need it in their lives to function. thats CRAZY. i'm gonna be sorta all over the place with this. thats just cause its how life is right now. its super crazy and i almost can't keep up.

one thing i am grateful for, is that when the boy and i fight in all reality it isn't that bad. we don't have super bad fights. we still can say i love you even if we're super frustrated. so for that i feel really blessed. it is not normal to have what we have. most people never get to that point of friendship as us. its such a great thing to be in a relationship with my very best friend. in the end the fights are meaningless and they will pass. which is good. its just a time of transition.

and to be honest i'm not fond of transition at all haha. i'm so sick of it. its part of life i know but its like a constant thing lately. there isn't even any time to get used to the last thing before another thing comes along. it will all get better.

i am just hoping i will get another nanny job soon. or figure out what i'm doing.

thankfully i have gotten a lot of books for review so i'm excited about that. i just need something to work right soon.

another kinda scary thing is. i am indeed flying to PA in march to visit with the boys family. his parents (who i've already seen/met), his brother, aunts and their families. it should be interesting. we have a late flight and i don't know i'm kinda nervous but i really don't like planes either. haha. but i'm such a quiet person in general. i don't know its just gonna be crazy. i've been looking up the TSAs rules for things to put in carry-ons. its so crazy. i'm only looking up this stuff cause i'm a last minute packer. i uh have been known to pack 2 hours before leaving.... if that. so i had to make lists now and look up this stuff. even though this is in march. hahaha i'm so crazy.

speaking of family. i just don't know why my extended family is so hung up on all things possession wise. its so annoying. its just so sad to me because its not how i am. but its how my grandma is. and its like a status symbol. i don't understand it. i also don't understand why everything to her is about dogs and possessions. oh and my cousin who holds the family name. its like no one else matters. it just really bugs me. but i guess there isn't anything i can do. its all i've ever known. its probably all i will ever know.

things will look up. i gotta go and write some reviews now. til later friends!

meh

2011-01-16T11:25:00.000-08:00

well blog is just you and me right now. and honestly thats pretty sad. yesterday was pretty crappy a sort of fight with the boy i'm sick of it happening but i guess its just something that does. i think we understand each other better now but still. i'm mentally exhausted from it.

there was talk about going to see his family but i dunno i just don't know on one hand that is really scary but its important to him. but i dunno this week has sorta sucked. i kinda lost one of my nanny jobs. because they decided to put her into preschool. *sigh* i dunno i'm just so stressed about money with both boys money and mine. its annoying.

i feel super alone right now. i had some very disturbing dreams and then i wake up and there is no one to talk to. which kinda is the story of my life. but sometimes i wish it would be different. i wish that a lot but it probably will never happen.

i guess i'll just have to go get lost in a book. which is what i like to do it at least helps me i guess it never solves any problems though.

i am sitting here skipping church watching the football game but i still feel super alone. the dog has to have surgery on Tuesday. i guess i'm just beaten down right now. i'm sick of transition periods. they seem to be happening far too often. i wanted this to be the year of change but not the year of transition. i don't like transitions. change i wanted for the boy and i to change and get closer and for him to get a job and all sorts of stuff.

man these people at this game sure look scary. i dunno why people paint their faces. its weird and i don't think i like it. i guess i'm just at a low point right now. i don't know what to do about it either. i feel like i have no where to. an obviously no one to talk to except this trusty blog of mine that i have neglected. good times good sunday... i guess thats all for now.

Unexpected Love by Andrea Boeshaar

2011-01-11T13:50:00.000-08:00

Unexpected Love (Seasons of Redemption, Book 3)

Unexpected Love by Andrea Boeshaar is the third book in the Seasons of Redemption series. All three of these books are amazing. The covers are beautiful and the stories fall together really nicely. Its great to have a series that incorporates new characters but still keeps the ones in the previous book in the story. Its really irksome to have a series book not even have the same characters at all so this is a great series.

Unexpected Love picks up where Uncertain Heart left off. It introduces Lorenna Fields, a nurse from Chicago. She is the caretaker of a mystery man. He was found by a ship in Lake Michigan

Renna was immediately involved in this patient.. She marks him as mysterious and starts getting her family to pray for him. He has amnesia and wasn't doing well at the start but does pull through. Just not remembering everything. Though slowly he remembers bits and pieces of his life. Renna calls him Mr. Blackeyes. He also lost his eyesight in the whole ordeal. At least for a time.

Renna builds a special relationship with this patient no matter how hard she would like to try. She can't pull away from him at all. She has her own insecurities. A birthmark is her main insecurity. She doesn't want anyone to see it. But also thinks it makes her uglier than anything. Will she learn to stop thinking like that? We may never know. l but you might know if read the book. Now this is all I can say without giving away the whole storyline. But trust me this one is a great one and you won't ever believe what happens next.

Waiting for the next one in the series will be tough but it will be much anticipated that is for sure! Please look for Andrea Boeshaars novels. They are amazing!

Hurricanes in Paradise by Denis Hildreth

2011-01-11T13:47:00.000-08:00

Hurricanes in Paradise

Riley Sinclair is settling into her new job as the director of guest relations at a resort on paradise island. She is finally getting on track after things in her life have been so rough and crazy. Being in guest relations can be tough at times. And Riley has a super stressful job. She has to be there for everyone and anyone taking care of everything.

While taking care of a high maintenance author. There were also two ladies that were brought into the group. They somehow fell together in the same places most of their stay. But Riley was stretched to her limit with the author. But they all fell into friendships with each other that no one would have even imagined.

This has a lot of laughter, frustration, hurt, deceit and then throw in a hurricane and boy you have a party!

Not being familiar with this author I didn't really know what was expected. If it was going to be good or bad. But this was such a great book with so many twists and turns. It just never stopped getting intriguing. Too bad it had to end since it was such an awesome read. But Denise Hildreth had such a great method of putting a story out there. I can't wait to read more from her. Check out Denise' books at your local library or bookstore.

oh christmas eve

2010-12-24T00:33:00.001-08:00

Wow almost Christmas eve. Its such a weird time right now. Everything seems to be so wacked out. But at moments I wouldn't change it for the world honestly. Even if its all in disarray. Christmas eve will be weird. I haven't gone to the family get together in 2 years now. And its a whole lot less drama for me. Last year it was cause dad had surgery on the 23rd. So we weren't gonna go anywhere at all. That was the first Christmas that the boy spent with us too. This year I am not going by choice. I feel like I shouldn't have to deal with the drama. Its so silly. I almost can't stand it its so silly. I am going to go to church for the first time ever on Christmas eve. I'm so stinkin excited about it. I get to watch my kids at church sing. Its gonna be sooooo cute I cannot wait. Plus I get to spend the time with the boy. Christmas is our 1 year anniversary. That was the time we realized that we had feelings about each other. Its so weird to think about. I mean we have been together for so long. But really I think we were together the instant he moved up here last October. Its just so weird a good weird.

Some of his family is pretty enjoyable. At least through email. Cause obviously I don't know much about otherwise. Its such a blessing. I have been blessed in general. Just this week. I normally watch each of the girls twice a week. This week it was only once per girl. And both parents gave me a card and a gift card for 25 dollars. Its so not even necessary but I am so grateful for it. It is such a nice thing. I'm not used to that happening at all. My first instinct is to just go out and get something for them real quick. But they don't do it to get something in return. And I know that. But I’m just not used to getting presents at all. And its so disorienting when it does happen. I'm such a huge weirdo.

Well my car hasn't gotten broken into again yet. I think its happened twice or three times. I can't tell. But either way its annoying. There isn't anything but garbage in there. And clothes and feminine products in the trunk haha. I am prepared what can I say? Actually i'm not sure if my ice scraper is gone. I don't remember. Might have to check that out later.

I'm trying to write a lot of my reviews so I can just save and post later. Which is working. But then I haven't posted anything for my examiner page. Which is somewhat annoying. But I keep forgetting. I've also been trying to finish up these things i'm making for people. I'm half through my list. Plus I need to fix justins scarf. Which probably will just be redone totally cause I don't know how to fix it. Oh well it won't take that long. I've also got my huge pile of books to read which I haven't been doing either. Oh bother. I'm kinda behind on anything and everything I guess. Oh well what can you do right? Life kinda got away from me.

I am so grateful for the boy too. Living without him would be hard. I am not a huge sappy person but he gets that and doesn't get upset that I am not sappy. I do love him a lot. Its amazing at how much you could love someone. I just want him to get a job asap but I guess it'll happen when it happens. I am a worrier. Which is annoying but it is what it is. I need to trust more but trust is a hard thing. It is for everyone.

Things are looking up and that’s what I have to focus on.

Tom's of Maine

2010-12-23T13:00:00.001-08:00

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Toms of Maine. All opinions are 100% mine.

Have you heard of Tom's Of Maine

Its a line of natural hygiene products. They have tooth paste and deodorant. I'm not sure what else they have. But I use their deodorant. I'm not a totally organic freak but I didn't want to use aluminum in my deodorant so I switched to toms and its amazing. I use the clear roll on and it works pretty well. I'm happy with it.

I also like the toothpaste because I don't like mint stuff at all so finding a toothpaste for me that isn't a kids one that is difficult. But they have ones that aren't mint. So that's amazing for me.

Now they are doing a That's Wicked Fresh contest page, you go to the link and like and follow them on facebook and there are prizes. just go share you're favorite wicked fresh moment! i hope you will check them out soon. i am pretty pleased with their products. its a shame i didn't find them sooner. but please check out the contexts and try out their products as soon as possible! you won't regret it!

remember to check out their cavity protection toothpaste.

times

2010-12-12T12:03:00.000-08:00

"I know i need you I need to love you I love to see you, and its been so long i long to feel you i feel this need for you' and i need to hear you is that so wrong?

oh oh oh, oh oh oh, oh oh oh

now you pulled me near you when we're close i fear you still im afraid to tell you all that i've done are you done forgiving? or can you pass my pretending? Lord i'm so tired of defending what i've become what have i become?

oh oh, oh oh, oh oh.

i hear you say "my love is over, its underneath, its inside, its in between the times you doubt me, when you can't feel the times that you've questioned 'is this for real?' the times you've broken, the times that you mend the times you hate me and the times that you bend well my love is over, its underneath its inside, its in between, these times you're healing and when your heart breaks the times that you feel like you've fallen from grace the times you're hurting
the times that you heal the times you go hungry and attempted to steal in times of confusion and chaos and pain
im there in your sorrow under the weight of your shame im there through your heartache im there in the storm my love i will keep you by my power alone i dont care where you've fallen, where you have been i'll never forsake you my love never ends, it never ends mmm, mmm

oh oh, oh oh, oh oh" - Times by Tenth Avenue North

This song has been on my mind lately it has struck me. especially when it says "the times you're healing the times your heart breaks the times that you've falling from grace" and then " my love is over its underneath its inside its in between" its so relevant! I've had a really crappy last 7 days. but I'm still here i guess that counts for something.

but there was the car accident so that's stressful. i didn't know if it was gonna trigger a seizure from the dog. i was pretty worried about it. and it is around the time she would be having one. she has one every three months about. so there was that. but then the family is down a car. but then there is my car. i didn't drive it much last week. i hadn't been in it for like 4 days. i went in it and all my stuff was on my passenger seat but my car was locked. i thought it was weird. and my flashlight was gone. i felt super violated but i thought oh maybe my dad did it. he didn't do it. but i didn't get it cause i had locked my car and it was locked when i went in it. the next day i looked at it in the daylight. and determined that someone did break into it but they were like professional or something. didn't break anything and totally locked it and closed the compartments they went in when they were finished. who does that?!?!?! like honestly..

then that day also i had to go watch the munchkin and i had to do some stuff for Justin and then later on i was gonna take him to class but that never happened cause he didn't get his work done and that was frustrating the whole day was frustrating and i sorta had a breakdown it was annoying. but I'm still alive. then there were just little things that went wrong.

things are starting to look up again. we got our tree yesterday though i was so cranky yesterday i got better but smashing into that little car for that long of a time almost made me puke. oi. today no church i slept instead (crime right?) and maybe some writing but I'm trying to find a laptop used so i don't have to get one new. meh we'll see. anyways that's about all for now.

Book Review- The Snowflake by Jamie Carie

2010-12-07T20:47:00.000-08:00

The Snowflake

Well this next book up for christmas reviews is The Snowflake by Jamie Carie. Not familiar with this author. But it seemed like a good read. It was sent to me by B&H publishing for review purposes. That doesn't affect this in anyway.

This is set in 1897, around Christmas time. The main character is Ellen, she is traveling with her brother. They are bound and determined to reach the Alaska gold rush. Problems arise with the ship they are on, ice hinders them from going anywhere. Onto plan b they go! Buck makes a decision to travel on foot, going to Dawson City. Buck is another main character that comes in the story. He wants to leave behind a really distressing part of his life. He is determined to put all that in the past. But not until he explores it a little more. Though Ellen strikes him and he quickly starts to fall for her. Ellen stays behind in Dawson City. The stay there isn't a relaxing time. You'll see why when you read it. It would be bad of me to ruin the whole thing. But all in all its not what was expected.

The Snowflake is a great read. Also it's a nice story for Christmas time. It would also be cute to just set out on the table as a decoration. The cover is so cute and Christmasy!

never a dull moment

2010-12-05T16:03:00.000-08:00

that's for sure. i almost wish my life would go back to being dull and boring again.

here has been whats happening.

first off i got accepted to write for the examiner! so I'm excited about that. I'm gonna post book reviews up there fitting right? so here is where my profile is. http://www.examiner.com/christian-literature-3-in-seattle/amy-clark check it out and look and post my link everywhere! it will be awesome!

also yesterday my dad, brother and our dog got in a car accident. thank goodness for great neighbors who come running to help. my neighbor Joe came rushing over here. i had to get the dogs harness and leash. my dad was taking my brother to work. and the dog barely ever has a collar one. so i had to go down there but Joe got a call from his wife Kim who was driving on that stretch and saw them so he came to help so thank goodness he did. my mom was sick puking and the works so i had to do everything and i was freaking out cause i was so stressed and had fifty million things coming at me all at once. everyone is okay thank goodness but it looks like that car is totaled. bleh but i guess things could be worse.

its so funny too cause i had posted about it on facebook and then my cousin texts then she called her mom. who called my grandparents and grandpa was home alone he listened to the message started freaking out, then he called grandma she called here. and that was that. but then today my uncle (dads brother) called and talked and he heard from his kids who saw my facebook too. hahah i have a string of communication apparently. its hilarious. i guess it keeps things interesting guess i should post more things so they all talk to us more. ah well.

also a while ago dad kept saying that he wanted a new car. i was like well i guess you shouldn't have said that. couple weeks ago when we got snow my Friend had been wearing snow socks. and we all said her snow socks worked too well. so this was the case with my dad saying he wanted a new car. it is kinda good that it happened now. it needed work. but the bad thing is he had just filled up the tank a couple days before. ugh but pretty sure its totaled so hopefully we will get a settlement and such. it wasn't dads fault.

but another reason our neighbors are awesome. they offered for us to use their car if we needed a bigger car for something. they are so amazing to us they don't even know! I'm so glad their house didn't sell and they stayed here.

so thats it from here for now!

Book Review- Carol by Bob Hartman

2010-12-02T20:25:00.001-08:00

Carol: A Story for Christmas

Carol by Bob Hartman is a book that is about Christmas (obviously, right?) This is a really cute looking book and it's so small like a gift book. Though it's short it really is a great story. It is a play on the Christmas Carol. This in the category of those variations of the Christmas Carol in TV shows or movies that just have different settings. It does have some of the same themes.

Instead of Scrooge, the main character is an older guy named Jack who hates everything about Christmas. He's a very grumpy and kinda selfish man who has a bad day every day. But instead of being obsessed with money he's obsessed with music. After running into a gorgeous woman at the bookstore (literally), they start hitting it off while listening to a retro song. He gets sucked into a flashback which starts their reflection of his whole life from the early days to his future.

Not totally sure what I personally thought about it before I started reading it. There were really no expectations but I wasn't sure if I'd like it or not. In the end I really enjoyed it. The story was cute but also thought-provoking, and pretty entrancing. Seeing what happened next was a suspense you couldn't put down. At least I couldn't. It really does make you think about how Christmas is perceived these days. All the hustle and bustle on getting gifts and all the stress, while the meaning of Christmas is lost. Sometimes you just have to sit down and have a cup of coffee (or tea in my case) and think about it rather than get infuriated. All in all it was a great book. Check it out!

Jack O'Malley hates shopping,snow, and even Christmas. All three at once is Jack's idea of a very bad day. Storming into a Starbucks seeking escape, Jack runs smack into a beautiful and mysterious stranger, almost knocking her over and unintentionally changing his life forever. In this one moment his entire life—who he once was, who he is, and who he has the potential to become—flashes before his eyes. In this humorous rendering of Charles Dickens' classic tale, timeless lessons are reexamined through the lens of modern society. The result is funny, moving, and ultimately thought-provoking. [-Amazon]

no drama? wow thats a shock!

2010-11-29T14:31:00.000-08:00

thanksgiving was SO weird cause there was no drama and no family. but its a GOOD weird. seriously thats my first relaxing holiday. the boy and i spent it with friends from church and a lot of her family. and boy was it refreshing i LOVED it. oh man it was so fun. we will definitely be hanging with them again. that was a joyus thing.

but of course the drama from the other side continues. my granny wouldn't even go to her great grandchild's party. shes such a stinkface. she had us go pick up the stuff for his birthday and take it to my cousins house. so annoying. then my other cousin is annoying cause hes an alcoholic and he wont' talk to my cousin heidi cause she called him a "drunk" she did say alcoholic which is true he is. and it runs in the family. but whatever it is what it is i guess. so he didn't show up at the party but my other cousin. he did but he recently got back into drinking/drugs and he looked SO bad and seemed super off to me. its just so sad. i dunno what to do cause i can't do anything really.

i'm just glad i read or craft to cope with things that bug me haha. such a healthier way to deal with things. there is eating crappy foods too but i generally start to feel yucky after doing that.

i've been soooooo tired lately. last night i think i slept 10 hours and i was good but then a couple hours after i woke up i was tired all over again. crikey.

oh! our family thanksgiving on saturday went well. our friend david was sick but his wife and his daughter still came. we played apples to apples. my cousin came over with the boys too! so it was a fun group. always good to have great friends who you consider family over. and my cousin enjoyed it too. then yesterday was a birthday party at my cousins house. and that was pure insanity. all those boys were insane. so loud oh man. but it probably didn't help that i didn't sleep all THAT much and then had 15 toddlers in the morning service. boy i had a day of crazy kids yesterday.

i applied to be a writer for the examiner so i'm hoping i make it cause that could be good. i'm gonna rewrite all my book reviews and then post reviews there so that will be great. i hope i make it in! anyways i guess thats all i got for right now.

i also made a forum for my blogfrog community go check it out and talk it would be amazing! and stay tuned for christmas book reviews!